National Assembly - 07 November 2006
TUESDAY, 7 NOVEMBER 2006 __
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
____
The House met at 14:02.
The Speaker took the Chair and requested members to observe a moment of silence for prayers or meditation.
ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS – see col 000.
NOTICE OF MOTION
Mr R JANKIELSOHN: Madam Speaker, I hereby give notice that I shall move the following motion:
That the House debate the issue of losses of ammunition, arms and other military equipment in SA National Defence Force military bases in South Africa and in peace support operations abroad, allowing the Minister of Defence to hear the views of Parliament so that this problem may be dealt with effectively with the support of this legislature.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. SUSPENSION OF RULE 253(1) IN RESPECT OF FURTHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING COLLEGES BILL
(Draft Resolution)
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Madam Speaker, I move the motion as it is printed on the Order Paper in the name of the Chief Whip of the Majority Party, as follows:
That Rule 253(1), which provides inter alia that the debate on the Second Reading of a Bill may not commence before at least three working days have elapsed since the committee’s report was tabled, be suspended for the purposes of conducting the Second Reading debate on the Further Education and Training Colleges Bill [B23D – 2006] (National Council of Provinces – sec 76) today.
Agreed to.
SUSPENSION OF RULE 253(1) IN RESPECT OF REVENUE LAWS SECOND AMENDMENT BILL
(Draft Resolution)
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Madam Speaker, I move the second motion, as it stands printed on the Order Paper in the name of the Chief Whip of the Majority Party, as follows: That Rule 253(1), which provides inter alia that the debate on the Second Reading of a Bill may not commence before at least three working days have elapsed since the committee’s report was tabled, be suspended for the purposes of conducting the Second Reading debate on the Revenue Laws Second Amendment Bill [B34 – 2006] (National Assembly – proposed sec 75) tomorrow.
Agreed to.
PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN GOVERNMENT AND CIVIL SOCIETY IN FIGHT AGAINST HIV AND AIDS
(Member’s Statement)
Ms M M MADUMISE (ANC): Thank you, Madam Speaker. The ANC would like to applaud the Deputy President, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, in her capacity as the chairperson of Sanac, for her determination in deliberating on issues of HIV and Aids. We would also like to commend the civil society organisations for the strides they have taken in the fight against HIV and Aids.
The invitation extended to the Deputy President to address the civil society congress delegates on the action plan to save lives was indeed a timely gesture to endorse this partnership initiated between the government and all role-players. This congress was the best platform for showing a sense of solidarity, collectivity and unity by all stakeholders.
The ANC acknowledges the fact that the battle against HIV and Aids is continuous and can only be defeated by working together. The ANC-led government has always been a strong believer that no single sector, Ministry, department or organisation can in isolation be responsible for addressing the HIV and Aids epidemic. We note daily with great concern the increasing number of orphans and vulnerable children due to HIV and Aids.
The Deputy President emphasised the importance of unity in fighting against HIV and Aids. We, the ANC, concur with the other stakeholders who also backed the Deputy President, by saying there should be unity between government and civil society so as to combat HIV. The Deputy President spoke of strengthening the national partnership against Aids through unity of purpose and action. The ANC supports the call for partnership between the government and civil society to fight Aids. Social and economic inequalities, gender inequality and violence drive the epidemic. The comprehensive plan put in place … [Time expired.] [Applause.]
LAUNCH OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING WEEK
(Member’s Statement) Ms J A SEMPLE (DA): Madam Speaker, the DA supports the launch of Human Trafficking Week by the International Organisation for Migration, together with other NGOs and the media. The week runs from 4 to 11 November to raise awareness of human trafficking in South Africa, and various events have been planned to raise awareness and to publicise IOM’s toll-free line: 0800 555999.
Research has revealed that trafficking in human beings for sexual exploitation is flourishing in South Africa, with women being trafficked to our country from South-East Asia, Eastern Europe as well as other African countries. There is also evidence that growing numbers of South African women and children are being trafficked both internally and to Europe and Asia for sexual exploitation.
Although South Africa is a signatory to international conventions against human trafficking, the only legislation currently in place making this practice a crime is the Children’s Bill. What about women and men who are also being trafficked? It is deplorable that this government is taking so long to pass the necessary legislation.
HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES SUFFERED BY WOMEN IN SOUTH AFRICAN PRISONS
(Member’s Statement)
Mr H J BEKKER (IFP): Madam Speaker, the Jali Commission has shone a brutal light on violence and sexual abuse in South African prisons. However, the investigation has largely focused on the experience of male inmates and its findings said very little about female prisoners, who are faced with serious challenges of human rights abuses.
One ex-inmate of the female wing of Johannesburg Central Prison reported that women inmates are abused and beaten by female warders, who would take advantage of the culture of silence which is an integral part of prison life. Female inmates are often ignorant of their rights and reluctant to challenge Correctional Services. She claimed prisoners are often denied their rights under section 44 of the Correctional Services Act.
It is totally unacceptable that violence against women is also perpetuated and magnified behind bars. If inmates petition or protest for recourse to their rights, the officials should not intimidate prisoners or blemish their permanent record in a bid to keep them docile. As we are approaching the 16 days of activism, it is of vital importance that the Department of Correctional Services treat female prisoners with care and dignity, in line with the requirements of the Constitution, as well as the notion of restorative justice in order to ensure successful rehabilitation. I thank you.
SADC SUMMIT ON REGIONAL INTEGRATION IN SOUTHERN AFRICA
(Member’s Statement)
Mr S J NJIKELANA (ANC): Thank you, Madam Speaker. The democratic South Africa under the ANC-led government is continuously working to strengthen regional unity and Pan-African unity in all social endeavours.
Last month the SA Development Community, or SADC, held an extraordinary summit on regional integration. The theme of the summit was the Economic Integration of SADC. The summit was attended by heads of state and government from the region. They met and discussed, amongst other things, the reviewing of progress and the proposal of measures for scaling up implementation of regional integration; the assessment of the current status of implementation of the free-trade area in terms of activities required to complete it by 2008, as contained in the regionally indicated strategic development plan; and the analysis of progress on the milestones for achieving the free-trade area and the SADC Customs Union, as well as the macroeconomic convergence in the region.
This development is an important part of the shared objective by the SADC member states to reduce poverty and underdevelopment. It also forms a very solid and strong basis for the enhancement of South-South co-operation, as well as the advancement of the Ipsa co-operation, with particular reference to the recent summit between China and Africa. Such an economic integration within SADC would form a very good basis for ensuring the sustainable implementation of the deal between China and Africa. I thank you.
INTERNATIONAL LIFE CHAIN SUNDAY AND THE FIGHT AGAINST ABORTION
(Member’s Statement)
Mrs C DUDLEY (ACDP): Madam Speaker, Sunday, 1 October was International Life Chain Sunday, and an estimated one million men and women over 900 locations worldwide stood for the right to life of the preborn baby.
The ACDP commends South Africans who have been faithful in standing for the rights of the most vulnerable in our society. The most dangerous place in the world today is not Iraq, Afghanistan, Sudan or the Congo. The most dangerous place in the world today is the womb. Preborn babies are being killed in their mothers’ wombs at a greater rate than any other section of society. The mortality rate of preborn babies varies from one in three to one in four. A growing number of people worldwide are beginning to recognise the abortion holocaust as the greatest crime being committed in the world today.
This war against children made in the image of God must be exposed and opposed. The preborn baby is genetically, physiologically and organically a distinct person from the time it is conceived. At about three weeks after conception the baby’s heartbeat can be detected. Six weeks after conception the baby has its own lifelong brainwave. If the absence of a brainwave is considered the sign of death, why then is the presence of this brainwave not accepted as a confirmation of life?
Birth does not turn a nonhuman into a person. Birth is only a change in environment for a life that began many months before. Every abortion stops a beating heart. Every abortion ends a brainwave. Every abortion is the murder of a helpless and innocent human being.
For You created my innermost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb. My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depth of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body.
We know that abortion kills babies and that over 600 000 babies’ lives have been taken legally through abortion since 1997 in South Africa. We know that women are exploited and deceived into thinking that abortion will solve their problems and improve their lives. We know that abortion harms women and places them at risk physically. We know that legalising murder does not exempt women and girls from unbearable suffering from guilt, grief, nightmares, depression and suicidal tendencies. We know that health workers and professionals are intimidated and discriminated against. These shocking realities cannot go unchallenged. I thank you.
WATER AND SANITATION CHALLENGES AT SCHOOLS
(Member’s Statement)
Mr L W GREYLING (ID): Madam Speaker, many schools in South Africa do not have the basic requirements to provide an acceptable level of education. Over 4 000 schools do not have access to electricity, and over 2 500 do not have water and sanitation.
Despite these figures, only 29 schools had been electrified by August this year. If we are going to bridge the divides in this country, the government has to give greater priority to the provision of infrastructure at schools.
The ID also believes that we need to do more in terms of the provision of libraries at schools. Currently, only one out of every five public schools has a library. The provision of libraries at all schools is now more important than ever if we are going to truly equip our children with proper literacy skills. The stimulation of reading enables our children to gain an equal footing in life. The eradication of basic problems, such as the provision of libraries, will also help in the abolition of future, more complex, difficulties.
The ID would therefore like to call upon the Minister of Education to make the installation of libraries at all schools a priority. To provide books to all our children will help us to bridge the educational divide in South Africa. I thank you.
NATIONAL CHILDREN’S DAY
(Member’s Statement)
Mrs W S NEWHOUDT-DRUCHEN (ANC): Madam Speaker, the ANC notes that this past Saturday, 4 November, was National Children’s Day. We applaud and support the initiatives taken by the ANC government to mark and honour this day for the children of South Africa. Poverty, substance abuse, neglect and HIV and Aids are some of the factors that lead to larger numbers of children being in distress. HIV and Aids also result in many children being orphaned and in child-headed families.
The ANC-led government has put in place measures to address the challenges that face our children. The government has developed and continues to formulate transformative legislation and policies that obligate all government departments, in all three spheres of governance, to integrate constitutional rights into all aspects of child welfare, health, education and their general care and livelihood. I thank you. [Applause.]
ROADS IN THE NORTH WEST PROVINCE
(Member’s Statement)
Mr B E PULE (UCDP): Madam Speaker, South Africa is bracing herself for the 2010 Fifa World Cup, which has become a household event for both young and old, government and nongovernmental organisations, private sector and civil society. Transport, which is the heartbeat of the country and therefore a focus area, has to determine whether people will really arrive alive owing to the condition of our roads.
Roads in the North West province are a real catastrophe. Travelling from Ottoshoop, Lichtenburg and Ottosdal up to Wolmaransstad is a nightmare. A difference will only come about when you join roads in the Free State, that is, across the Vaal River. Another road that has become a killer road is the one between Koster and Lichtenburg. It needs upgrading because it has become the bypass of the N4 tollgate, that is, the road between Zeerust and Swartruggens. Intervention by the national Department of Transport would be appreciated. Thank you.
TV PROGRAMME EXPOSES CORRUPTION AT HOME AFFAIRS OFFICES
(Member’s Statement)
Ms N M MDAKA (UIF): Madam Speaker, the UIF is shocked by the rampant corruption that was recently exposed by the SABC’s Special Assignment team at the Department of Home Affairs. The revelation is cause for serious concern. It is quite surprising to acknowledge how quick it is for illegal immigrants in this country to obtain South African citizenship by buying genuine identity documents, while a huge number of eligible South Africans do not have access to social grants owing to long delays in the issuing of IDs.
It is an indictment of government that up to a quarter of the identity documents issued in this country may be fraudulent. The whole saga makes one wonder how many dangerous criminals and foreign nationals have fraudulently obtained South African passports in order to commit crime and cause havoc throughout the country. Thank you.
SAA SUSPENSION OF FLIGHTS TO GEORGE
(Member’s Statement)
Mr M SWART (DA): Madam Speaker, opportunity knocks but once and, when it does, it should be exploited to full advantage. SA Airways seems to have difficulty in understanding this principle. Air traffic in South Africa is growing at double the rate of the gross domestic product. Most airports in South Africa will have to double up on capacity every nine years, and some airports even more so.
The chief executive officer of Acsa states that air traffic to George and East London, on the other hand, grows by approximately 30% per annum, which is more than double the growth at our international airports.
But what does SAA do? They stop flying to George, leaving a gap for other airlines to fill. They have now gone even further and decided to retrench all their ground staff at George airport. They will be starting up a low- cost airfare line shortly. By virtue of this move, they should be able to compete with other airlines on the lucrative George route. This seems to have escaped SAA. Surely they need to rethink their business strategies?
I call on the Minister for Public Enterprises to convince SAA of their short-sighted approach in respect of flights to and from George. Surely they should reinstate the flights and retain the jobs of SAA staff at George?
WOMEN IN SENIOR POSITIONS
(Member’s Statement)
Ms N P KHUNOU (ANC): Madam Speaker, the ANC’s vision has always been the creation of a prosperous, equitable, stable and democratic society. In an economic sense, our vision is one of decent work and living standards for all in the context of qualitatively improved equity in ownership, management skills and access to opportunities.
The SA government has consistently pushed all sectors to ensure both racial and gender equity at all levels of business. However, a new study of 50 of some of the largest and most influential listed companies in South Africa shows that little has changed at the top.
The study reveals that 66% of directors are white and only 34% are black. Most of the executives are still white and male; earn an average of R15 million a year, more than 700 times more than that of the average worker who happens to be black and female.
While women make up 52% of the adult population, they comprise only 41% of the working South African population and only constitute 14,7% of all executive managers. An added dimension to this is that at the last count only about 2% of top executives in this country were female.
The ANC calls on business to accelerate training and management skills development programmes aimed at bringing about racial and gender equity in all levels of the workplace. I thank you. [Applause.]
THE CHALLENGE TO UPROOT THE CULTURE OF VIOLENCE IN OUR SCHOOLS
(Member’s Statement)
Mr R P Z VAN DEN HEEVER (ANC): Madam Speaker, the aim of education is to teach the youth to love their people and culture and to honour human solidarity, freedom, liberty and peace.
The recent violent incidents in our schools highlight the challenge we face to uproot the culture of violence in our society. Regulations for safety in public schools provide for a police officer, principal or their delegate to search any person on school premises for weapons or drugs and seize them without a warrant should there be a reasonable suspicion to that effect. Principals would also have the right to stop any person from entering school premises without their permission.
The ANC urges all our communities, business and civil society to assist school authorities to maintain in our schools conditions that are conducive for learners to enjoy their right to education. I thank you. [Applause.]
LAND RIGHTS FOR THE DESCENDANTS OF COENRAAD BUYS
(Member’s Statement)
Mnr S E OPPERMAN (DA): Speaker, daar is min dinge wat so ’n wrang smaak laat as die georkestreerde onteiening wat die Kempton Park-komplot ten opsigte van grondregte van bruinmense teweeg gebring het. Die eiendomsreg van die bruin nasate van Coenraad Buys in die noorde van die land word deur ’n grondeis bedreig.
Hierdie reg van die Buyse, wat reeds in die 1800s bevestig is, kan nou deur ’n tegniese vertolking van die huidige wet nietig verklaar word. Die 1913- afsnypunt ten opsigte van grondregte het van die belangrikste aanspraakmakers doelbewus onteien; hulle wat in hulle bloed die gene dra van die Hessaqua, Attaqua, Namaqua, Griqua, Chochoqua en al die ander stamme van die Quena of Ottentotu.
Hulle was ons voorouers en het baie honderde jare gelede dié deel van die kontinent wat vandag as Suid-Afrika bekendstaan huis genoem. Die waarheid word in die argiewe van hierdie Parlement bevestig. Nasate van die vroegste inwoners is deur die gruwelike miskenning van die geskiedenis skaamteloos beroof.
Hierdie situasie is onaanvaarbaar. Die aanspraak deur dié bruin mense op grond en vergoeding móét erken word sonder dat ons daarvoor bakhand hoef te staan. Dankie. [Tussenwerpsels.] (Translation of Afrikaans member’s statement follows.)
[Mr S E OPPERMAN (DA): Hon Speaker, there are few things that leave such a bitter taste in one’s mouth as the orchestrated dispossession caused by the Kempton Park plot with regard to the land rights of the coloured people. The right of possession of the coloured descendants of Coenraad Buys in the northern part of the country is threatened by a land claim.
This right of the Buys family that was already confirmed in the 1800s, can now be annulled due to a technical interpretation of the current Act. The 1913 cut-off date with regard to land rights purposefully dispossessed some of the most important claimants; those who are carrying the genes of the Hessequa, Attaqua, Namaqua, Griqua, Chochoqua and all the other tribes of the Quena or Ottentotu in their blood.
They were our ancestors, and many hundreds of years ago they called this part of the continent, that is known as South Africa today, their home. The truth can be found in the archives of this Parliament. Descendants of the earliest residents were shamelessly dispossessed as a result of the abominable disregard for history.
This situation is unacceptable. The claim of these coloured people with regard to land and compensation must be acknowledged without us having to beg for it. Thank you. [Interjections.]]
TENTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CCMA
(Member’s Statement)
Mr T G ANTHONY (ANC): Madam Speaker, the Constitution and the democratic government have brought about a vast improvement in labour rights and dispute settlement systems in the country. South African workers and employers will celebrate improved relations when the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration marks its 10th anniversary on 11 November.
The CCMA is one of the first major institutions established by the new ANC- led democratic government to promote social justice and equality in the workplace. Its establishment has engendered significant changes in dispute resolution processes. The CCMA receives a daily average of 500 new referrals and processes approximately 10 000 cases a month. It has handled more than one million cases since its establishment. The CCMA promotes social justice and economic growth for the labour market through dispute resolution, dispute prevention and institution-building.
The ANC wishes the CCMA a happy 10th anniversary on 11 November 2006. I thank you.
ESTABLISHMENT OF CLEAN DEVELOPMENT MECHANISM
(Member’s Statement)
Ms P BHENGU (ANC): Madam Speaker, the World Summit on Sustainable Development, WSSD, in Johannesburg provided a unique opportunity for governments, United Nations bodies, business communities, civil societies and the development finance institutions to agree on the mechanism and resources required to meet the sustainable development targets at global, regional, national and local levels.
The ANC commends our government on developing a mechanism to ensure that industrial developments do not lead to the erosion of the country’s natural resources. This has found expression in the establishment of the clean development mechanism, the CDM, developed by the Department of Minerals and Energy in an effort to cut carbon emissions while ensuring economic growth in the country. The CDM projects function in line with the Kyoto Protocol. The projects will create more employment in the farming industry without causing harm to the environment.
Today is better than yesterday, tomorrow will be better than today. Ngiyabonga. [I thank you.]
WATER AND SANITATION CHALLENGES AT SCHOOLS
(Minister’s Response)
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Madam Speaker, I would like to respond to the points made by the hon member Lance Greyling, Comrade Lance Greyling from the ID Party … [Interjections.] Absolutely. I just want to respond to one part of it, and that is his reference to the water and sanitation challenges at schools in our country. He’s highlighting a very real problem, and we appreciate that. I must say that the Department of Education is acutely aware of the problem, and is doing something about it.
But, yet again, it is one of the great legacy projects, if you like. This is what we inherited. This is after decades of apartheid rule, and the disparities that we inherited. These are some of our challenges, Comrade Lance, that we have to address jointly. It is not easy to address them.
It is true that a number of schools do not have adequate sanitation, but we believe that we are starting to address this in quite an innovative way. Thousands of schools have pit latrines as we speak; that is what they were offered, that’s all they have. A number of these pit latrines – Lance, it gets worse – are full, so these schools are registered as having toilets, but they are nonfunctional toilets because the pits are full.
So, the Department of Science and Technology, together with the Department of Education, has found an innovative way of addressing this, and that is through owner-operated pumps. These are small pumps; the owners operate them, and are able to empty these pits in a sustainable way. So, they will empty these pits, but at the same time, a number of households are faced with the very same problem in that vicinity. So, similarly, as the owner operators, they would be able to provide this service to local households.
It’s a pilot project at the moment with the Eastern Cape government, and we think that we will learn our lessons through this pilot. We think, hon member, that we will able to expand on it, and address the much larger problem, in addition, of course, to the further infrastructure that needs to be provided. The Department of Education’s infrastructure unit is engaging with the provincial departments. The problem is that the funds are located within the provinces, not with the national Department of Education.
So it isn’t easy, but we would ask hon members to support us in this endeavour to ensure that all learners have decent sanitation facilities at their places of learning. Thanks, Madam Speaker. [Applause.]
WOMEN IN SENIOR POSITIONS
SADC SUMMIT ON REGIONAL INTEGRATION IN SOUTHERN AFRICA
(Minister’s Response)
Dr R H DAVIES: Madam Speaker, I would like to just respond briefly to the statements by the members Khunou and Njikelana.
I just want to say that the figures that the hon member Khunou has given, are broadly in line with the figures that the department has available on the extent of black and women management control. The figures that we have indicate that although the number of black executives has doubled since the year 2003, it still remains a paltry 12,8% while the number of black women executive directors remains even lower at 1,9%.
I think the point is that black economic empowerment, up to now, has focused almost exclusively on share transactions. However, the codes of conduct, which will be emerging soon, attribute points for ownership, management control, employment equity, skills development, preferential procurement, enterprise development and contribution to socioeconomic development.
We believe that these codes, when they come out in the very near future, will contribute to broadening the scope of black economic empowerment.
The hon Njikelana was quite right to highlight the SADC summit. This extraordinary summit has put the issue of regional integration much more onto the front burner than it has been up to now. The immediate focus will be on the steps to put in place the free trade area agreement, but we should also note that there are highly ambitious plans to establish the SADC Customs Union still by the year 2010.
I think that these issues need much more debate and discussion and engagement, including by parliamentarians, and including institutions like the SADC Parliamentary Forum. There was one point which was made by the summit which I think we need to take very much into account.
The summit called for there to be a greater alignment of the integration agenda, and the processes of establishing free trade and customs unions - a greater alignment of these processes with the poverty-reduction programme and also with programmes to address issues of real economy development, infrastructure development and co-operation in the areas of agricultural and industrial policy.
I think these are the issues we are going to have to grapple with as time runs ahead, but the SADC summit was indeed a very historic event. Thank you. [Applause.]
HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES SUFFERED BY WOMEN IN SOUTH AFRICAN PRISONS
(Minister’s Response)
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF CORRECTIONAL SERVICES: Deputy Speaker, I am responding to the statement made by the hon Hennie Bekker on the situation of female inmates.
I think, as the Department of Correctional Services, we are absolutely committed to the 16 days of activism against violence against women and children, and the 365 days of activism against violence against women and children.
I think it would be more helpful for the hon member Bekker to supply us with details of such incidents. Indeed, inmates are entitled to certain rights under the Correctional Services Act, and they should be granted those rights. If we can be provided with those details, then we can respond, because it doesn’t help us very much if you make general sweeping statements about correctional service officials. I believe the majority of them are not corrupt, and do not subscribe to the culture of silence around what happens to inmates in correctional services.
We would be very grateful if the member could provide us with those details, and we could follow that up as the Department of Correctional Services. Thank you very much. [Applause.]
SUSPENSION OF FLIGHTS TO GEORGE
ROADS IN THE NORTH WEST PROVINCE
THE CHALLENGE TO UPROOT THE CULTURE OF NATIONAL CHILDREN’S DAY
(Minister’s Response)
The MINISTER OF EDUCATION: Madam Deputy Speaker, I think on the matter of small towns and flights to those towns, all of us would support greater service being provided. I personally believe we should have greater competition in that area. So, it might be that that is the service that low- cost airlines should really be given the space to address. It is not just George. My hon colleague at the back indicated Port Elizabeth, another colleague spoke of Richards Bay, several small towns which we want to reach, and find difficulty in reaching. They require improved service.
With respect to the need to transform senior levels of appointment in our country, we would agree with the hon member of the ANC that certainly we should ensure more opportunities for training and then advancement to executive level within the private sector and in certain departments within the public sector as well. So we would agree that we all need to do much more to ensure the transformation of our institutions in the country, both to more adequately reflect both the population of the country, and to ensure that the potential which exists is fully attended to and given the chance to succeed.
I agree with the hon member of the ID. Hon Hanekom responded partially. We should have a library at every school. It is an absolute necessity, and should be addressed. But, again, if one chases the rand, it goes somewhere where we do not have control of it, so perhaps we should be monitoring and asking, as Parliament, is the way we are allocating funding the most appropriate to give us the results that we desire, or should we be looking at different models where targeted interventions are supported in a rather different way? This is something members certainly could assist us in.
On the matter of the rights of children, absolutely, our country has tried to do a great deal. I find that while indeed we have had International Children’s Day, and we pay attention to children on that day, we have had, recently, much conversation about leave for teenagers who become pregnant while at school. We’ve talked about these teenagers but not the babies that they bear. Regarding this leave that people are proposing, once these teenagers go back to school, who’s going to take care of the children?
Let us not have rights competing against each other. Let us work to encourage young people not to have babies when they’re too young to have children. [Applause.]
On the matter of violence, certainly, our regulations have been published again. These are old regulations; they are not new regulations. We are saying that certainly we will support schools, but we are encouraging leadership in schools, principals and our schoolteachers to assist us in countering ill-discipline and bad conduct in our schools.
I cannot understand how a school principal is unable to say to a person, ``What are you doing here?’’, and to use the telephone to call the police to assist where necessary. We should be alerted to these problems. Anybody who enjoys a position of authority in a school should be able to exercise that authority, and our regulations grant them that space.
Finally, if I could say, certainly, …
… mo go ntate wa UCDP, ke dumalana le ena gore ditsela tsa rona di tshwanetse gore di nne dintle. Ke ile ka kgweetsa mo tseleng ya Zeerust le ya Koster, le nna ga ke a itumela ke bona koloi ya me e tsena mo tseleng e e ntseng jana. Ke dumela gore re tshwanetse re bone gore ditsela tsa rona tsotlhe di dintle, mme Lefapha la Ditsela la Bokone Bophirima le setse le tshwaragane le ntlha eo. Fa o ka tsamaya mo tseleng ya Zeerust gompieno, o tla fitlhela gore e setse e baakantswe. Ga e sa tshwana le pele ga nako ya ditlhopho tsa Mopitlwe 2005. Re dumalana le wena.
Re le Lefapha la Ditsela, re a e dire tiro ya rona. Re a di baakanya ditsela tseo. Fa ke dumalana le wena ke re: E, a re ba kope gore ditsela di baakangwe le rona fa re bona tsela e dirilwe e le botoka e phala ya maloba, re tshwanetse gore re ba bolelele gore ba dira tiro e ntle. Ka jalo, re dumalana le wena mme tiro e a dirwa. Ditsela di ntse di baakanngwa. Ke a leboga. [Legofi.] (Translation of Setswana paragraphs follows.) [… to the UCDP representative that we agree with him that our roads should be in good condition. I once drove on the Zeerust and Koster roadS, and I was not happy to see the condition of the road. However, we are working to improve our roads, and the Department of Public Works, Roads and Transport in the North West province is presently doing just that. Should you decide to use the Zeerust road today, you will notice that it has been improved. I agree with you in that regard, that it looks completely different to the one of March 2005 before the elections.
As the department responsible for roads, we do our best to improve the conditions of the roads. Furthermore, I agree with you that we should continue to request them to improve our roads but we should also compliment them when we notice improvements. Therefore, we agree with you that there is an improvement done on our roads. Thank you. [Applause.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Thank you, hon Minister. I was thinking that I was still in Africa, where ubuntu reigns supreme, and that someone was going to welcome me back to the House after such an absence. [Applause.] But, having not done that, I welcome myself back. [Laughter.] There is another slot for a Minister, if you would like to take that. Deputy Ministers Hangana and Shabangu, there is a slot. Okay. We will then come to the first Order of the Day.
FURTHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING COLLEGES BILL
(Second Reading debate) The MINISTER OF EDUCATION: Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. Allow me, Madam Deputy Speaker, to be the first one to welcome you back. O amogetswe [Welcome.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Ke a leboga, Mma. [Thank you, Minister.]
The MINISTER OF EDUCATION: Welcome back home.
I would like to recognise the provincial heads of the FET college sector who are present in the public gallery. I am most happy to see them here, and I hope that they will ensure that the Bill is properly implemented once it has been passed, and that our recapitalisation programme for the colleges succeeds. I hope that is the reason you are here. [Applause.]
Allow me, as well, to welcome the future of South Africa. Hello, the future of South Africa. [Applause.] We are very pleased to see these young people present in the House today.
Let me begin by thanking the members of the portfolio committee for the work that they have done with respect to this piece of legislation. Particular thanks go to Prof Mayatula and his team for the work that they have done. We have had public hearings led by the committee, committee consultations with various stakeholders, and I believe that this has been very important in assisting us to draft a Bill that will have a positive impact on the FET college sector. The Bill achieves several important objectives. It sets out a specific statutory framework for colleges; it creates the basis for addressing the current shortage of skills that confronts our country; and also gives concrete shape to the necessary skills revolution that has to get under way in South Africa.
Our Deputy President, the Minister of Finance, and the Minister of Labour, Minister Mdladlana, have all stressed the importance of FET colleges in meeting government’s goal of increasing the pool of skilled and semiskilled workers. We have a national shortage of skilled and semiskilled workers in our country. This shortage has serious consequences for our ability to complete large-scale projects like the Gautrain, and to prepare to host the 2010 Fifa World Cup. So, it must be addressed.
The Bill has to be understood against this backdrop and in relation to the skills training regime that we have in South Africa today. We have many institutions that offer training in our country. The private sector does its own training, individuals run training programmes, we have the Setas and, of course, we have some of the FET colleges offering programmes. However, generally, none of the providers in our country work in a co- ordinated and coherent fashion.
Despite the many excellent efforts, we still have massive skills gaps in our country, and trainees fail to secure jobs in sectors that critically need skilled practitioners. In fact, recently an academic presented a paper, which indicated that in directing our interests at graduates who are unemployed in South Africa, we have failed to attend to semiskilled persons, artisans and intermediate skilled persons from the college sector who do not enjoy employment opportunities in South Africa. We need to close these gaps.
We are all doing training, but our trainees are not responding to the economic demands of our country. So, there is something wrong and we need to correct it. We have, currently in our country, about 400 000 students that attend FET colleges, and around 700 000 that are in our universities and our universities of technology. Given the human resource requirements of South Africa and the current trajectory of our economy, our numbers should look very different. The greater number of young people should be in our colleges of further education and training.
It is important to point out that the skills revolution that we are setting in motion is not one that is solely concentrated in the FET colleges. The Asgisa and Jipsa initiatives have had important impacts on our universities, which also have a role to play in the provision of skills. In the coming period there can be little doubt that the shape and functions of higher education institutions and, in particular, universities of technology, will be influenced by the maturing FET college sector, with the progressive introduction of responsive and modernised programme offerings.
Several important developments are linked to the passage of this Bill. Firstly, we have developed norms and standards for funding public colleges. These are currently in the public domain for public comment. Secondly, we have agreed that we will establish a student loan and bursary scheme for young people in the FET college sector. The Bill provides the framework to strengthen responsiveness, co-ordination and quality of programmes.
We have been restructuring the colleges in the past six years, but we have not consolidated this restructuring in a specific college focus law. The aim of this Bill is to achieve this consolidation. We have recapitalised the college sector. From next year they will offer intermediate and high- level skills to students in the age range of 16 through to mature adults who would be able to enter our colleges.
We will be able to give effect to the long-held desire of the ANC of providing lifelong learning for the people of our country. Achieving this goal means that our colleges have to be distinct from schools in South Africa. It is important to state that the Bill protects educators who are currently employed in the college sector. This was a major concern that emerged in the public hearings.
We have, through changes initiated by the portfolio committee, ensured that protections exist for employees in the college sector. The Bill does make some changes with respect to the employment of management staff. We have ensured, I think, that we have addressed these major labour concerns.
To those who fear that we are deviating from our promise to create different types of high schools in South Africa, I wish to confirm today that this objective remains part of our planning. The plan to have focus schools remains as part of the plans of the national Department of Education.
We will create different types of focus schools. We will have technical schools. We will have schools that focus on technology training. We will have schools that focus on theatre and drama and other core disciplines. These are plans that provinces are working on currently, and we will be announcing the changes and the schools identified as focus schools.
We have to have more artisans in all economic sectors in South Africa. We believe that colleges are best placed to teach these skills alongside industry and other partners. The time for the college sector has come. Now is the time for employers to look to the college for those critical skills they need in the immediate future.
I must thank industry for the very exciting role they have played in shaping our curriculum and in ensuring that our curriculum and programmes are fully responsive to the interests of the employer and the growing economy of South Africa.
The major developments in the college sector in the next three years will be the teaching of new modernised programmes. The new programmes have been developed in full consultation with stakeholders. They are grouped into 13 key fields, and comprise 52 core subjects, and many more additional specialisations and electives. These have the possibility and flexibility to be extended where necessary.
Thank you, Madam Speaker and hon members. A great deal of work has been done to lay the basis for us to develop the human resources we need to support our economy and the development programmes of South Africa. Thank you. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Prof S M MAYATULA: I would also like to welcome back our Deputy Speaker. Hon members, the first question we need to address is the significance and importance of passing this Bill. Are Further Education and Training colleges not part of the FET band? Why do they need a special Bill? The ANC-led government was mandated in 2004 to halve poverty and unemployment by 2014. According to Asgisa documents, the Accelerated Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa, and I quote:
For both the public infrastructure and the private investment programmes the single greatest impediment is shortage of skills, including professional skills such as engineers and scientists, and skilled technical employees such as artisans and IT technicians.
If we agree that we have thousands of unemployed and unemployable youth with irrelevant degrees and diplomas roaming our streets, it cannot be business as usual. We need to do something; we need to do it now.
The best way to do that is to turn our FET colleges upside down. The Further Education and Training Colleges Bill is meant to do just that. But – and a big “but” – this cannot and will not be done at the expense of the educators. It is with that in mind that the portfolio committee conducted public hearings, where we received 15 regional submissions, of which seven appeared before the committee for oral presentations.
The committee would like to thank each and every one of them for their submissions, which gave us a better understanding of the Bill and enhanced it. I’m happy to report that all the proposed amendments, which are technical in nature, were unanimously agreed to by all the parties in the committee.
All the submissions were unanimous that this Bill is long overdue. However, we were concerned about the following, amongst other things, which the members will respond to: One, chapter 4 of the Bill, which deals with the appointment of management staff by the MEC and the employment of FET college staff by college councils.
It is important to remember that even as we speak, over 1 800 of the staff are in the employ of college councils;
Two, the protection of the workers under the Education Labour Relations Council would be threatened. The committee took this seriously and amended the Bill accordingly. I refer hon members to the proposed amendment in clause 54(2), which explicitly states that, and I quote: “Section 197 of the Labour Relations Act applies to the appointment or transfer as contemplated in subsection 1.”
Ndifuna ukubaqinisekisa abasebenzi ukuba mabangabi naxhala: Ezi kholeji ziya kuhlala ziphantsi kolawulo lukarhulumente, ngesandla soMphathiswa wezeMfundo wephondo. Yiyo loo nto inqununu yesikolo iza kuqashwa nguMphathiswa. Yiyo loo nto uMphathiswa enegunya lokuwunqumla umthombo wemali ukuba inqununu okanye isigqeba esilawulayo asihambi ngemigaqo ayibekileyo uMphathiswa kwiBinzana 26. Iimali zabasebenzi zomhlala-phantsi nezoncedo lwezonyango, i-medical aid, zikhuselekile. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[I want to assure the employees that there is no need to be apprehensive. These colleges will remain under the control of government and will be managed by the MEC for Education. This is the reason why the Minister will appoint the rector. The Minister will therefore have a right to terminate financial support when the rector or the management council of the institution does not follow the regulations set by the Minister in Clause 26.
Pension fund benefits and medical aid subsidies are protected.]
In actual fact, this Bill will create more opportunities for them. Through the funding norms, the FET colleges will be recapitalised and well- equipped, and their workshops will be accredited. The lecturing staff is offered R10 000 each to improve their qualifications in order to adapt to the new, improved college system.
As part of its oversight responsibility, the Portfolio Committee on Education visited FET colleges in Limpopo, Gauteng, Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal from 15 to 19 August 2005. Our report and recommendations were approved and adopted by this House.
The Bill will go a long way in the implementation of those recommendations. The following were some of the colleges’ concerns. In many instances these concerns were presented by speakers on behalf of college rectors. One of their major concerns was that, and I quote: “The use of the Employment of Educators Act of 1998 for post provisioning in FET colleges was problematic.”
To name but a few of those who made these claims, one was Dr Motsoaledi, the MEC for education in Limpopo; Mr M H Mnisi, the CEO of Vhembe FET College; Mr T J Kekana, the CEO of Seshego campus in the Capricorn FET College. Mr Abe Mashele, the Chief Executive Officer of Sedibeng FET College put it more dramatically when he said:
The limitations of the Employment of Educators Act of 1998, in relation to inflexible leave arrangements, impacted negatively on the working hours of educators. The regulations governing the workload of educators do not recognise relevant and essential occupation acquired technical competence and experience of artisans.
The committee also made the following observations: One, some colleges had workshops and others did not. The existing workshops were generally located in old, dilapidated buildings. Most equipment used for both management and learning aids was obsolete.
Two, the machinery in most of the workshops at FET colleges, especially in Limpopo, was archaic, a health hazard, rusty and in some cases nonexistent. Colleges lacked accredited workshops. Through this Bill and the norms and standards of funding, as contained in chapter 5 of the Bill, all these concerns will be addressed.
The Bill allows for the development of a legislative framework that is separate and unique from other educational frameworks, such as schools and universities. This is also a very laudable approach, and will go a long way in strengthening the already existing two pathways under legislation, of learnerships and apprenticeships. This move, with added workplace learning and collaboration with Setas, will create opportunities for learning that will allow our young people to develop skills that are much more aligned to the world of work.
A very important consideration of this piece of legislation is that it will position the colleges to take their place in delivering the skills that are clearly recognised and identified in Asgisa and Jipsa, the Joint Initiative for Priority Skills Acquisition.
The colleges will now be in a position to begin to develop as a sector that has its own specific role, function and identity. All indicators of economic growth and development in South Africa point to the critical need for skilled artisans in a range of economic sectors.
The FET college sector has been identified as a sector that is best placed to deliver these skills. The Bill will enable FET colleges to be sufficiently flexible to respond to the changing needs of local, provincial and national drivers without having to go to the MEC. The employment of college staff by the college councils is meant to facilitate and ensure this flexibility.
Madam Speaker, the future of FET colleges is bright, and the commitment of the ANC-led government is reflected in the following programmes: One, the allocation of institutional support for management and governance development through the college collaboration fund, the National Business Initiative, NBI; two, the allocation of close to R2 billion to upgrade the facilities, retrain lecturers and position the colleges for the anticipated growth; three, the development of a modern and appropriate curriculum, which will provide both the high-level fundamental skills and the specific technical skills required for employment and economic growth. These skills have been widely consulted on, with both business and industry.
I would like to take this time to thank both the Minister and Deputy Minister for the good working relations, the officials of the department for their support, the state law advisers for their guidance and the members of the committee for their commitment. The ANC supports the Bill. I thank you. [Applause.]
Mr G G BOINAMO: Madam Deputy Speaker, allow me also to welcome you to the House.
The DA supports the principle of the Further Education and Training Bill. However, we have strong reservations about certain clauses. There is an enormous deficiency in our education system, which leaves many of our citizens without an opportunity to use their talents, which is depriving our economy of essential skills. This deficiency is our inability, up until now, to provide young South Africans with marketable skills. It is our success in addressing this weakness on which, more than anything else, our future economic growth depends.
The current average age of a qualified South African artisan is 54 years. What this means is that by 2015, unless there is radical action, there will be a massive shortage of artisans to supply South Africans with commercial and industrial sectors, and a growth rate of 6% will become a pipe dream.
The system for further training and colleges was created several years ago in an effort to resolve this problem and plug our skills gap. The Bill we are voting on today will make some significant changes to this current system. The biggest change is a shift from institution-based funding to programme-based funding. The objective of this change is to enable situations in this band to become responsive to the needs of the labour market, and to be more flexible in an environment when the needs of these markets change, which can virtually change from day to day.
The DA is in full support of this objective but we are concerned that the practical reality, once this Bill is implemented, is that this change will not allow us to deliver the skills the economy needs. This change in approach means that the Department of Education will only fund and support 13 FET vocational programmes.
A range of organisations have expressed their doubts as to whether the vocational programmes that the FET will fund will in fact deliver the skills that the economy needs. For example, the National Association of Professional Teachers of SA has raised concerns about an apparent non- alignment of qualifications that the department will support and fund with skills needed to find employment.
We may well find ourselves in a situation where learners will not come flooding into these FET colleges to obtain these newly created vocational qualifications because they know that the skills they acquire in these colleges will not give them entry into the workplace. This could see the demise of FET colleges because of the low uptake, and it could also mean that skills shortages in our economy persist. We are also concerned about the way that the money allocated will be spent and whether sufficient provision will be made within the broad budget allocations to allow these colleges to operate effectively. Will budgets be adequate to redesign and equip laboratories and workshops to comply with the new curriculum? Will bursaries be adequate? There are also still questions, for example, about who is going to administer and pay salaries, pensions, medical aid and housing benefits. Another source of concern is that there is no provision for the fate of college staff who will not be included within the 13 departmentally approved programmes.
Finally, we welcome the provision for the registration of private further education and training centres. The important job of skills development cannot be done by the state alone, and we need to harness the resources of the private sector. The DA supports the view of the ANC that partnerships with the private sector in skills development should be required and encouraged.
We hope that, once this Bill is implemented, the Department of Education will be embarking on a drive to forge partnerships for skills development and will conduct an intensive campaign to harness the resources of the private sector for this purpose. I thank you, Deputy Speaker. [Applause.]
Mr A M MPONTSHANE: Hon Madam Deputy Speaker, Minister, colleagues, this Further Education and Training Colleges Bill, like most of the education Bills that have passed through this House, contains good intentions, which the IFP supports. Let me mention two of these. Firstly, the Bill provides an opportunity to colleges to develop flexible programmes and shorter courses that are in line with the principle of supply and demand. Secondly, it provides for improved government structures and colleges in the form of college councils and SRCs.
However, like other Bills that we have passed, the greatest test of this Bill is in the implementation. Let me mention three issues which I think are examples of what I call implementation failure related to education generally and to this Bill in particular.
Firstly, schools, especially those in rural areas, remain with a shortage of qualified teachers in spite of us having passed the enabling Bill about three years ago.
Secondly, the college recapitalisation programme is moving at a snail’s pace. Thirdly, in ANC style, education MECs went about announcing with pomp the names of schools that were to become no-fee schools. But today, these schools have as yet to receive these funds. These are but a few examples of what I call implementation failure. Therefore, hon Minister, the IFP, whilst it is in support of the spirit of this Bill, urges you and the department to pay singular attention to the issues of capacity of these colleges.
Other issues, like quality and access, which are in themselves a sine qua non for the success of colleges, are in our view dependent on the capacity of colleges or college councils to implement the requirements of this Bill.
Ukuba benginesikhathi esanele mhlonishwa uNggqongqoshe, bengizokuxoxela indaba yamakolishi lawa okwakungawothisha kodwa asephenduke amakolishi okuqeqesha ezindaweni zangakithi. Uma udlula ngakuwo lawa makolishi, uma ngingakubeka ngesiNgisi ngingathi … it is as if they are haunted. Umuntu akaboni lutho kulawo makolishi.
Ngqongqoshe, sengathi kungaba khona into ethize eyenziwayo ukuze nawo abekwe ezingeni elifanele. Siyethemba ukuthi ngalo Mthethosivivinywa, maqondana nezezimali nokuqasha ngoba imikhandlu izonikwa ithuba lokuthi iqashe ngokwayo …
IPHINI LIKASOMLOMO: Asisekho isikhathi, baba. Siyaxolisa.
Mnu A M MPONTSHANE: Angizwanga mhlonishwa?
IPHINI LIKASOMLOMO: Asisekho isikhathi.
Mnu A M MPONTSHANE: Bengingezwanga mhlonishwa. Nakhu phela sengithathekile lapha ukuxoxela umhlonishwa ngendaba yamakolishi lawo okusengathi asefana nezipoki ezindaweni zethu. Ngiyabonga mhlonishwa. (Translation of isiZulu paragraphs follows.) [If I had enough time, hon Minister, I would tell you a very sad story about the former teacher training colleges which are now used as colleges for further education and training in our areas. If you drive past these colleges, they look as if they are haunted, to put it in proper English. There is nothing positive that one sees from these colleges.
How I wish, Madam Minister, that something could be done about these colleges so that they, too, could be placed in a position that they deserve. We hope that this Bill will empower the colleges in terms of finances and give the councils powers to employ educators on their own …
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon member, I regret your time has expired.
Mr A M MPONSTHANE: I beg your pardon, Madam?
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Your time has expired.
Mr A M MPONTSHANE: I am sorry, Madam Deputy Speaker, I did not hear that. I was just hooked on telling the hon Minister about the conditions of colleges which now look like ghosts in our areas. I thank you, hon Madam Deputy Speaker.]
Ms S N SIGCAU: Deputy Speaker and hon members, the skills shortage in our economy has often been described as an inhibiting factor for economic growth and a contributor to the high rate of unemployment. Of particular importance in these circumstances is the level of vocational and further training between levels two to four in the National Qualifications Framework. This is what the Bill proposes to address, essentially by repealing the Further Education and Training Act of 1998.
Whilst we fully support the need to strengthen this vital area of education and skills development, we are concerned that an Act that is barely eight years old is being entirely repealed.
We welcome the introduction of a standard statute for colleges. Hopefully, this will ensure greater conformity among colleges as far as governance, administration and standards are concerned, and thereby ensure that students can expect the same level of training and education irrespective of the college they attend. The UDM supports the Bill. I thank you.
Adv A H GAUM: Hon Deputy Speaker, this Bill will make a major contribution towards changing the face of vocational education and training for the better forever.
Viewed alongside the government’s recapitalisation programme of FET colleges, the new funding framework and the programmes framework for these colleges, the Further Education and Training Colleges Bill provides the tools we need to do the job. This is the job of kick-starting the South African skills revolution that will catapult thousands, no, hopefully hundreds of thousands, of South Africans out of the second economy into the first economy, out of a world of poverty and misery into a world of opportunity and success.
This Bill and the process of aligning the programmes these colleges offer with the world of work, deserves the support of all of us. We are launching a new skills development initiative that will correspond with the needs of our economy. We will make sure, and we are making sure, that the programmes of our FET colleges are relevant, responsive and flexible.
On a continual basis we need to establish in which areas we require skills and we have to respond to these needs. We know, for example, that we need 15 000 engineers. These colleges must make their contribution to satisfy this need, and we are now empowering them to do just that. The days when courses did not cater for the demands of the economy are over.
This Bill, unlike its predecessor, provides the flexibility that the FET sector requires to modernise, to be relevant and to be responsive. The colleges are currently restrained by legislation to draw on educators as their only source of employment. During the redeployment process, colleges had to draw from the redeployment lists.
This meant that they had to settle for a biology or languages teacher, for example, when they actually required lecturers with technical drawing skills. This Bill will now enable college councils to employ people with the necessary skills to do the job.
No more will these colleges be constrained by the Employment of Educators Act, disallowing them to make use of the expertise of highly skilled individuals like Patrice Motsepe. They will be free to appoint him to offer business fundamentals or any other course relevant to his expertise and experience. No more will the Boland College be prohibited from acquiring the services of Prof Roux de Villiers, former Dean of Engineering at the University of Stellenbosch, who is currently doing the noble job of assisting poor Stellenbosch schoolchildren with their mathematics.
This is the kind of flexibility that this Bill will provide, flexibility that will turn colleges into vibrant institutions at the cutting edge of the ever-changing economy and its needs. Without flexibility, Asgisa and Jipsa will have little meaning. We operate in a modern industrial society and we simply have to respond to this reality if we are serious about economic growth and creating employment opportunities.
En dit is juis omdat ons die kolleges buigsamer, relevant en responsief wil maak dat ons deur middel van hierdie wetsontwerp ’n groter rol aan die kollegerade gee. Hulle is ten beste geplaas om die regte mense met die nodige vaardighede in diens te neem sodat daar op die ekonomiese behoeftes in die kollege se onmiddellike omgewing gefokus kan word.
Diegene wat dit as ’n soort privatisering wil veroordeel, sit die pot mis. Die kolleges bly openbare instellings wat deur die staat gefinansier word en aan die staat verantwoording moet doen. Die bestuurspan van die kolleges word deur die LUR’e vir onderwys in die onderskeie provinsies aangestel. Die wetsontwerp gee ook ’n duidelike rol aan die Minister van Onderwys en die LUR’e om die kolleges so te rig dat hulle responsief bly ten opsigte van ons ekonomiese behoeftes.
Vir te lank was ons kolleges die stiefkinders van onderwys. Op sy eie sou die wet nie hierdie situasie fundamenteel reggestel het nie. Gelukkig staan die wet nie op sy eie nie, maar word dit onder andere gerugsteun, agb Boinamo, deur ’n rekapitalisasieprogram van R1,9 miljard - met ander woorde, genoeg geld om te doen presies wat ons wil doen deur middel van hierdie wetsontwerp. Dit beteken dat die kolleges nie slegs groter outonomie kry nie, maar ook die nodige kursusse, infrastruktuur en toerusting om aan die eise van ons tyd te voldoen. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)
[And it is precisely because we wish to make the colleges more flexible, relevant and responsive that we are giving, through this Bill, a bigger role to college councils. They are best suited to employ the right people with the necessary skills to focus on the economic needs in the immediate vicinity of the college.
Those people who wish to condemn this as a type of privatisation, have the wrong end of the stick. The colleges will remain public institutions that are financed by and accountable to the state. The management team of the colleges is appointed by the MECs for education in the respective provinces. The Bill also provides a clear role for the Minister of Education and the MECs to guide the colleges in such a way that they remain responsive to our economic needs.
Our colleges have been the stepchildren of education for too long. The Act in itself would not have rectified this situation fundamentally. Fortunately, the Act does not stand alone, but it is supported, amongst other things, hon Boinamo, by a recapitalisation programme of R1,9 billion – in other words, enough money to do precisely what we intended with this Bill. This implies that the colleges not only gain greater autonomy, but also the necessary courses, infrastructure and equipment to comply with the requirements of our time.]
They also get the tools to do the job.
The Department of Education undertook extensive research, hon Boinamo, in developing a plan for the recapitalisation of the colleges. They did their homework. The programmes offered and the numbers of learners enrolled in these programmes were reviewed, an infrastructure audit was undertaken, population figures per province and migration trends were obtained, and an international literature survey and labour market surveys were undertaken.
Colleges were required to develop draft operational plans, which were submitted in January this year, and recapitalisation funds were subsequently allocated on the approved operational plans. It’s clear, therefore, that there was a thorough process.
The funds will be used for infrastructure development, including the development of sites and buildings and the refurbishment of workshops, classrooms and simulation rooms; the acquisition of modern equipment for training and IT; the training of lecturers for new modern programmes; and the improvement of administration systems and material to deliver the programmes. It is therefore clear, hon Boinamo, that the DA’s concern is without any basis.
On the Minister’s invitation, business has entered into a partnership with government to assist with the recapitalisation process and to help ensure that colleges become high-quality, responsive providers of education and training in order to meet the needs of industry and the world of work, as well as the wider needs of society.
Asgisa identified the need for priority skills development as a key enabling factor for meeting the 6% growth target so critical to government’s goal of halving poverty and unemployment by 2014. In keeping with this, particular colleges will be developed as centres of excellence in specific technical and vocational fields.
It is of paramount importance that business will continue to assist with this endeavour in concrete and practical ways, for example through staff secondments and industry engagement with the FET college curriculum.
Once again, the Bill before this House today will make these kinds of exciting public-private partnerships possible. Through these relationships, colleges and industry will be able to partner like never before to ensure the modernisation, responsiveness and effectiveness of the colleges sector as a key provider of intermediate to higher-level education and training to meet the needs of society and the economy now and in the future.
A new era has dawned on the vocational education and training sector and on our FET colleges. [Interjections.] Our colleges are being moved from the wings to centre stage. It will be the colleges’ responsibility to drive the skills revolution. We have given them the tools and now it is up to the colleges to finish the job.
In conclusion, I would also like to refer to another one of the hon Boinamo’s numerous concerns. He referred to the benefits: he said that there was a concern that the employees would not get the benefits that they have at the moment. We indicated to him and to the DA in the portfolio committee that that was indeed not the case - that the Bill refers to section 197 of the Labour Relations Act in particular - and our other colleagues will also refer to this matter – and that it is very clearly saying here that the new employer is automatically substitute in the place of the old employer in respect of all contracts of employment in existence immediately before the date of transfer. All the rights and obligations between the old employer and an employee at the time of the transfer continue to be in force as if they had been rights and obligations between the new employer and the employee.
So it is very clear that all of the concerns of the DA and the hon Boinamo have been addressed by this Bill, and we really count on the support of every party in this House. Thank you. [Applause.]
Mr L W GREYLING: Deputy Speaker, let me first welcome you back to the House, officially. The FET Colleges Bill was not a particularly controversial piece of legislation. All parties can agree on the need for this sector of our educational system to be encouraged and supported. South Africa as a country is in dire need of skills and it is hoped that with the passing of this Bill, we can take another step closer towards giving South Africans the practical skills needed to take up a productive role in our economy.
The ID urges the department to use this piece of legislation to fast-track the establishment of FET colleges throughout the country and, in particular, in the underserviced rural areas, where youth are in desperate need of these educational services. The ID would certainly support this Bill. I hope that it equips many people with the skills needed to help my so-called comrade Derek to deal with sanitation problems at our schools. Thank you.
Mrs C DUDLEY: Deputy Speaker and hon Minister, the ACDP welcomes the Minister’s efforts to improve the FET sector and ensure relevance and results. The education and training focus of the FET Colleges is an area of national priority because of the skills deficit that the country faces. Implementation, however, is the key to this Bill and the capacity of provinces in this regard is a concern. Hon Minister, are you confident that the objectives will be achieved without additional national support?
While the main objective of the Bill is to repeal the Further Education and Training Act of 1998 and to ensure that all issues relating to FET Colleges are dealt with in one Act of Parliament, large sections of the FET Act, as it is now, appear unchanged, aligning with the assessment in the memorandum, which states:
Seeing that the Bill is merely a refinement of the current FET Act, no additional costs are foreseen.
Some significant changes are, nevertheless, evident. Changes to staffing and funding arrangements, for instance, are a significant departure from current practice. These may present colleges and provinces with challenges, especially during the changeover period, and the ACDP echoes concerns about capacity and calls on the department to make adequate support available and not to let the process flounder.
During the hearings, stakeholders expressed concerns that the call for input on this FET Colleges Bill was unfortunately rather late, considering the advanced state of the Bill’s progress at the time. General lack of awareness of the existence and content of the Bill amongst public FET college staff was disappointing, considering that informed participation of relevant stakeholders should have been a priority. This sector, like many others, struggles to maintain staff morale, and the fears and uncertainties which a Bill like this would naturally evoke, could have been lessened had the department managed to bring the relevant stakeholders into the process earlier.
The ACDP supports this Bill, which holds promise in terms of stimulating skills development in South Africa. Thank you.
Mr I S MFUNDISI: Deputy Speaker and hon members, the Bill is in keeping with the ideal of transforming education and aligning it to the present day needs, by providing regulation to education and training and for the registration of Private Further Education and Training Colleges, among others.
I will dwell mostly on the question of the Private Further Education and Training Colleges. For the record, the UCDP appreciates that government is considering restoring historic church schools that produced many African leaders, among them, Hiltown, St Peters and Wilberforce.
It will be highly appreciated if the department can facilitate the registration of the Private Further Education and Training Colleges and save the applicants the frustration of sending them from Spenlow to Jorkins by provisional registration since the year 2000.
A college that has fallen victim of this treatment is the Wilberforce College in Evaton. The plea is that all colleges in a similar situation be registered, mainly for Wilberforce, because it is the brainchild of the legendary Charlotte Maxeke and houses what is now called the Charlotte Maxeke Renaissance Building. It is currently assisting in upgrading Grade 12 students who did not make the grade to university through specialised teletuition using the latest IT equipment from the mother institution, Wilberforce University in Cincinnati, Ohio. To this end, a good number of products of this institution are furthering their studies in accountancy, science and commerce at universities.
Wilberforce is situated in Sedibeng District Municipality in Gauteng and is accessible to most people and should therefore not be begging, as it boasts state-of-the-art infrastructure, laboratories and everything.
A similar school with which it applied for registration, the St Augustine College in the heart of the city of Johannesburg, has been functioning for the past five years without any problem. We are happy for them, but request that a black-run independent church institution should not be given a wide berth regarding its registration. The UCDP supports the Further Education and Training Colleges Bill.
Mme M P MENTOR: Motlatsa-Modulasetulo, maloko a a tlotlegang le baeng mo Ntlong, ga ke itse gore rre Boinamo ke motho yo o robalang ka mpa efe gonne re ne re dutse rotlhe mo tshekatshekong ya Molao o re o beileng fa gore re o mametlelele gompieno. O ne a dumalana le rona. Le gale, ke batho ba ba ntseng jalo. Lekoko la gagwe ke la bonkgate-ke-tlhaname. O dumalana le ena ka sengwe gona jaanong mme fa a fitlha kwa go, ga ke itse gore a ke ba ba golo mo go ena, ke a bona ba mo soka letsogo, mme fa a ema mo, ga a sa tlhola a dumalana le rona jaaka re ne re dumalana fa re le mmogo. Ke ne ke re mo go rre Boinamo, botshepegi bo a tlhokagala, o nne monna wa lefoko la gago. O seke wa nna o ntse o le nkgate-ke-tlhaname jalo. (Translation of Setswana paragraph follows.)
[Ms M P MENTOR: Deputy Chairperson, hon members and guests present in this House. I don’t know what kind of a person hon Boinamo is. He has been part of a debate which discussed this Bill so that amendments could be made. He was in accord with us. Anyway, this is what we expect from people like him. This is typical of people belonging to his political party, as they like to renege on their promises. You agree with him on something but when we are supposed to conclude, I don’t know whether it is his leaders who influence him to change his mind. I just want to say to Mr Boinamo, trust is essential; you must be a man of your word.]
Hon Dudley, I welcome the positive spirit from you and your party in engaging in the Portfolio Committee of Education through this process. You actually went out to support the Minister, particularly, to acknowledge her good leadership insofar as matters of education are concerned. We look forward to working with you very harmoniously in matters of education.
I need to ask this question first of hon Dudley, and then the labour movement, as much as I welcome the positive spirit in which she works with us. “How early is early?” Hon Dudley is reaffirming the claim, that I think is baseless, on the part of labour that the department consulted them not early enough. I hope you could qualify this “not early enough”.
It is a fact that most of the issues that were raised throughout the process by the labour movement, across the board, were taken into consideration, so much so that this Bill had to be redrafted over and over again to accommodate many critical issues that labour raised. I don’t know if they had wanted to be consulted even before the Bill was conceptualised. I think they were engaged relatively at the right time by means of which it could have been possible to allow them to participate in the process.
The first thing that I want to engage labour on is the right of this Parliament to freely, without undue pressure, be allowed to pass legislations. There should be no unreasonable demands such as that before we passed this legislation, the department, which is the employer, should have entered into particular agreements by means of negotiation within the negotiation chambers, the ELRC and the PSCBC. It is incomprehensible and unacceptable that Parliament should be expected to be bound by matters of negotiations between the employer and the employee and only heed whatever agreement is reached. That would be usurping the sovereign right of Parliament to pass legislation. [Applause.]
The same kind of demand is emerging from labour. A few weeks ago when the issue of Regional Economic Integration was being considered, the issue of the need to extend from two years to four years the work permits for workers that come from the SADC region to work in South Africa, again Cosatu in particular made the following deman:. “No, before we amend legislation to extend that period, Parliament must wait for the negotiations within Nedlac with the state before we can pass legislations.”
I am saying that this is out of order. It is incorrect and unacceptable. There is no way in which this Parliament can be expected to wait until it passes legislation for processes that are happening outside Parliament, irrespective of between who these processes are. This is the first thing I had wanted to raise.
Earlier on I spoke about consultation. It is not true that there was no consultation. There was sufficient consultation and I think the labour movement will agree that we have considered, as the committee and as the department, all the issues of critical importance that they raised. It is the right, but also the obligation of this Parliament to respect the pieces of legislation that it passed before, legislation that protected and continues to protect the rights of workers.
The issue of labour, namely the fear that the rights of workers would be trampled upon, has been addressed, and we have redrafted the Bill in a way that allays all fears that could have amounted to suggestions that we were trampling on the rights of workers. I must remember to speak a bit of Setswana again, Comrade Naledi.
Molawana o re o mametlelelang o, ke ona fela o o fang batho ba ba tlileng go ruta kwa dikholejeng madi a a kana ka R10 000, mongwe le mongwe, go ya go ikatisa seša. [This Bill amendment is the only one that would give the people who will be lecturing at colleges an amount of R10 000 each to improve their qualifications.]
I am saying that this is the only piece of legislation, amongst many pieces of legislation that we have passed, that paves the way for an allocation of R10 000 to every college lecturer that will be appointed, as a result of this initiative, to go and take up studies or make an effort to improve their qualifications in any field of their choice. Therefore, the amount of money that we have put aside is in addition to recapitalisation of colleges. We are giving every lecturer R10 000 to decide at any time, at his or her own pace, to pursue any field to improve their studies.
The other thing that we are doing with this legislation is to put in place public colleges that will be funded by the state, whose programmes will be influenced by the state. We are doing this deliberately in order to rise to the demands of the economy, because Minister, if you can remember, when we were passing the Education Budget Vote, I lamented our spending of a significant percentage of the GDP on education whilst we still remained wanting in terms of the skills that the economy is demanding.
This piece of legislation that we are passing today, is addressing exactly that concern by opening up the bottlenecks that were there in terms of programmes, qualifications and skills that are offered at the level of colleges. As you know, colleges lie in the middle of the GET band, the General Education and Training Band, as well as Higher Education, which are universities and technikons.
To address the shortage of artisans and engineers, we cannot only bank on the Jipsa and Asgisa initiatives. We have to put into place institutions that will fast-track, by way of intervention and direction by the state, the process of identifying these 13 programmes and more. It is not only 13 programmes, but there are 13 programmes specifically identified together with business as programmes that are necessary, crucial and urgent for this economy to realise 6% growth.
These are the things that we said we would need to do. This is long overdue, as Sasco said to us, in that this piece of legislation is long overdue and we hope that we will put it in place together with the governance mechanisms that will ensure inclusivity. Maybe I must speak Setswana again.
Go laola dikholeje tse ke ka tsela ya go akaretsa botlhe ba ba nang le karolo mo dikholejeng tse, e leng baithuti le batlhatlheledi. Botlhe ba tla nna le seabe mo tsamaisong ya dikholeje tse. [These colleges can be managed by including all stakeholders, namely students and lecturers. All of them will have a say in the administration of these colleges.]
The issues of quality promotion and assurance are also addressed in this piece of legislation so that it is not only the programmes that are relevant to the economy, but the issues of quality are also ensured to be brought along. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Dr S E M PHEKO: Chairman, the PAC supports the Further Education and Training Colleges Bill. The Bill states, as one of its purposes, the funding of public further education and training colleges. The preamble to the Bill refers to redressing past discrimination and ensuring equal access for people such as women and the disabled, and this complements the National Skills Development Strategy in co-operation with the Department of Labour.
Indeed, education must be accessible to all citizens of our country. The vast majority of this nation lives in dire poverty. One of the reasons that has been given for the high dropout rate by students in the African communities is that they have no financial means of continuing with their education. This country needs to do much more in education if we are to build a nation that can run its own affairs unhindered.
No nation can depend on borrowed skills forever. Education is a weapon for economic development, for technological advancement, for retrieving African epistemology and for mental decolonisation. No soldier can go to war without weapons. Equally, no nation can succeed in life without a weapon called education. This is why the PAC will always insist on free education for the poor. Thank you. [Applause.]
Mr B G MOSALA: Chairperson, hon Minister, Deputy Ministers, guests, comrades and friends, the ANC supports this Bill. It is very important for us to note the background provided so eloquently in the formulation of this groundbreaking piece of legislation.
Firstly, it is in pursuance of its passion for relevant and quality education for the people of South Africa that the Department of Education felt a pressing need to table this Bill. It is a Bill that endeavours to provide a public college system of education that will produce skilful, productive and employable young South Africans.
In order to achieve the goal stated above, the system that is envisaged must be underpinned by very good, realistic and relevant programmes for the achievement of excellence. Clause 43, subclauses (1),(2),(3) and (4), ensures that the Bill achieves this reality. This clause attests fully to the seriousness with which the Department of Education views the selection of programmes. Nothing is left to chance.
The Minister’s involvement in the prescription of minimum norms and standards for further education and training programmes that are offered at public colleges and the role of Umalusi to conduct quality assurance according to the relevant Act are but two examples that demonstrate the seriousness of the Department of Education.
I wish to quote Mariétta van Rooyen, from an article entitled “What is in the FET Colleges Bill?” posted on a website on 2 August 2006:
The Department of Education is clearly taking their work seriously and are beginning to show the results of hard work to set up a quality system of education and training for South Africa. The latest in a series of legislative documents put out for comment is the FET Colleges Bill.
It is very refreshing to listen to such appreciation for a job well done. Van Rooyen goes further to observe that, “It is clear that a lot of thought went into the planning for this legislation.”
We agree, because the Department of Education conducted a number of studies in relation to FET colleges and their programmes. These studies yielded the following, amongst other things: that there has been an explosion of programme offerings at FET colleges in recent years; that there are a number of accrediting bodies with differing and sometimes conflicting criteria; that some programmes are of high quality and attract many participants; that a number of programmes are outdated and of poor quality; and that there are duplications and inefficiencies in the programme offerings. It is also apparent that the majority of the courses are the N courses, and the majority of the students who complete these courses are unemployed.
In view of the above, it then became very obvious that intervention was of the essence, and intervention has come in the form of this Bill.
In 2005 the Department of Education began the process of developing new curricula to replace the current N1 to N3 courses. International best practice was sought, including wide-ranging consultations resulting in the following stages being embarked upon: researching the design of the programmes to replace the N1 programmes and considering the design of the qualification; and choosing the fields or sectors in which the qualification would be offered. In this regard, labour market surveys and the skills needs identified by Asgisa informed decisions to choose various fields from engineering to primary agriculture.
Thereafter the process of curriculum writing followed, which involved workshops attended and/or conducted by college experts, writing teams instructed by Seta and industry players and a variety of professional organisations. Comments were requested for the final writing session in mid- June 2006 and, currently, programmes comprising 52 subjects are ready for implementation at NQF levels 2, 3 and 4.
The kinds of processes I have sketched above are indicative of a government that cares for the progress of a nation. This is the government led by the ANC.
Mmuso wa rona o ikemiseditse ho fana ka thuto e phedisang, e ntshetsang pele, e hlabollang, e seng thuto e fanang ka mangolo a se nang thuso, a siyang bana ba rona ba diila mebileng ba hloka mesebetsi empa re re ba rutehile. Bana ba tswang dikoletjheng tsa rona ba tla tswa ba butswitse, ba betletswe ho kallana le diphepetso tsa bophelo.
Re thoholetsa Lefapha la Thuto ka molawana ona. Ke a leboha. (Translation of Sesotho paragraphs follows.)
[Our government is committed to providing quality education that is progressive and well balanced, and not the kind of education that issues useless certificates that will cause our children to be unemployable and to loiter in the streets, even though they claim that they are educated. Students from our colleges will be qualified and ready to face life’s challenges. We applaud the Department of Education for this Bill. I thank you.]
I thank you very much. [Applause.]
Ms S RAJBALLY: Chairperson, in view of the transition the education sector has undergone, this Bill certainly shall suffice in co-ordinating FET institutes and other learning facilities that also endorse FET programmes.
In view of the Bill’s ends, the MF welcomes the provisions that verify the identification of FET institutes and the management of their staff and finances. It is indeed necessary that legal verification be made as to the employment of staff, and their benefits and terms. This will allow greater clarity for both management and staff. We find the provisions in terms of standard college statutes for public colleges extremely beneficial to their governance.
The Bill provides well for the management of finances, and it appears that it will greatly benefit the management and operation of all FET institutes, and their staff and finances. Hon Minister, the MF wishes you well in all your endeavours. The MF supports the Further Education and Training Colleges Bill. Thank you very much. [Applause.]
Mr R P Z VAN DEN HEEVER: Chairperson, the Freedom Charter envisaged an education system where the doors of learning will be opened to all. One of the key areas of learning that the ANC has identified has been the development of skills to serve a widely diverse labour market and expanding economy. This is clearly set out in the goals of Asgisa and Jipsa.
In following after the ANC speakers who spoke before me, I am mindful of the broad overview given by our chairperson, Prof Mayatula; the recapitalisation process outlined by hon Andre Gaum; Comrade Vytjie Mentor’s eloquent outline of the role of Parliament in passing legislation; and the incisive analysis made by comrade Godfrey Mosala on quality education.
I will, therefore, concentrate on the additional aspect of the Bill, namely chapter 4 that deals with the appointment of staff and merging of public institutions, and how the ANC has structured its approach to these important areas in our educational landscape.
Die wetsontwerp maak voorsiening vir drie kategorieë personeel wat by openbare kolleges sal werk, naamlik die bestuur, die dosente en die ondersteuningspersoneel. Die bestuurspersoneel word deur die LUR vir onderwys in die provinsie aangestel. Die prinsipaal as die hoof uitvoerende beampte van die kollege, moet verantwoordbaar bly teenoor beide die hoof van die department, sowel as die LUR.
Die lektore en die personeel word deur die kollege aangestel sodat die inrigting oor die vermoë sal beskik om vinnig en effektief te reageer op die behoeftes van die samelewing. Indien ’n fabriek byvoorbeeld vir die kollege vra om die fabriek van ’n elektrisiën te voorsien, moet die kollege onmiddellik bekwame elektrisiëns kan aanstel, sodat sodanige mense by die kollege voorberei kan word.
Sodanige staf sal aangestel word uit fondse wat deur die Departement van Onderwys voorsien word, en insinuasies dat kolleges hulle studentegeld sal moet verhoog vir so ’n inisiatief, is natuurlik van alle waarheid ontbloot.
Op dieselfde manier is kwaadwillige gerugte dat lektore en ondersteuningspersoneel hul voordele soos pensioene, behuisingsubsidies en verlof sal inboet, totaal ongegrond. Al hierdie dinge word gedek deur artikel 197 van die Wet op Arbeidsverhoudinge van 1995.
Die ANC het seker gemaak dat alle personeel wat oorgeplaas word, gedek word deur artikel 197 van die Wet op Arbeidsverhoudinge, waarvolgens hulle oorgeplaas word met behoud van alle voordele wat hulle onder hul vorige wetgewer geniet het. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)
[The Bill makes provision for three categories of staff that will be employed at public colleges, namely management, lecturers and support staff. Management staff will be appointed by the MEC for Education in the province. The principal, as the chief executive officer of the college, will have to remain accountable to both the head of the department, as well as the MEC.
The lecturers and staff are appointed by the college so that the institution can by, all means, respond quickly and effectively to the needs of the community. If, for example, a college were asked to provide a factory with an electrician, the college would be able to appoint a competent electrician immediately, so that such individuals could be prepared at the college.
Such staff will be appointed from funds provided by the Department of Education and insinuations that colleges will have to increase their student fees for such an initiative, are, of course, devoid of any truth.
Similarly, malicious rumours that lecturers and support staff will forfeit their benefits, such as pensions, housing subsidies and leave, are totally unfounded. All these matters are covered by section 197 of the Labour Relations Act of 1995.
The ANC made sure that all staff transfers are covered by section 197 of the Labour Relations Act of 1995, whereby they will retain all the benefits that they enjoyed under their previous employer when they are transferred.] During the public hearings held by the education portfolio committee, all teacher unions raised their main concern about issues regarding the appointment of staff, as stated in chapter 4 and clause 54 of the Bill. Sadtu argued that subclause 13 of the Bill, which dealt with rationalisation of the workforce, should be deleted from the Bill since it is dealt with in the Labour Relations Act itself. The ANC, in the deliberations of its study group, considered this matter and through the education portfolio committee, have deleted subclause 13 from the Bill.
Naptosa, on the other hand, raised the concern that clause 54 did not go far enough in order to ensure that section 197 of the Labour Relations Act is a driving principle behind the consequence caused by the change of employment status. In response to that concern, the ANC initiated the redrafting of the original clause 54 in the portfolio committee and entered an additional subclause which unequivocally states that, and I quote:
Section 195 of the Labour Relations Act applies to the appointment of the principal, vice-principal, lecturers and support staff at the college.
In these instances, the ANC redrafted the legislation in accordance with the very vehement principled objections of the teachers’ unions. The ANC has followed that approach because it recognises unions as a fundamental role-player in the finalisation of the education policy and respects organs of civil society as institutions that should be consulted in a democratic manner.
The ANC could, however, not be persuaded by the equally eloquent submissions of the unions that collective agreement should automatically form the basis of legislation and that such collective agreement should be endorsed by Parliament without question. As Comrade Vytjie Mentor has pointed out, it is an undeniable fact that the status of employment in the public sector, and in particular public education institutions, is not determined by collective agreements but is prescribed by legislation. Legislation prescribes the specific responsibilities, powers and functions assigned to the employer.
It was, therefore, incorrect of the unions to allege that the department was unilaterally amending the status of the employer, as it is Parliament that originally assigned that status through legislation to the department. And it is only Parliament that can amend or change the status of the employer through an Act of Parliament.
Parliament has the constitutional obligation to make laws that reflect the government’s policies and must engage during this process with the broader public. Parliament does have a very democratic process by which to take into consideration the legitimate concerns of the unions and other members of civil society. It is for this reason that the education portfolio committee should hold public hearings in order to provide organs of civil society with an opportunity to formally address the portfolio committee about the various concerns and objections.
Even though not every phrase and comma proposed by the various organisations have been agreed to, the ANC feels satisfied that it has addressed the major concerns raised with regard to the appointment of staff at colleges. The Further Education and Training Colleges Bill was unanimously agreed to by all parties within the education portfolio committee, on 3 November 2006. I therefore listened carefully to the input of hon Boinamo to ascertain whether the DA would stick to this expression of support of the Bill in the portfolio committee. I must submit that I was pleasantly surprised by the more constructive and progressive input by hon Boinamo on behalf of the DA.
The DA’s view that it supports the principle of the Bill, but has strong reservations on certain clauses, is understandable. Let us just hope that when it comes to voting for the Bill, the DA will not get cold feet and turn its back on the positive steps that it took here today.
I agree that there is a historically biased view of learners to technical and vocational education. Learners often view vocational education as for those who work with their hands, and that those who want to work with their heads have to receive a university education. I agree with hon Gaum that legislation alone will not fix this problem. It will be up to all of us to turn around this negative perception by dynamic marketing programmes and persuasive systems of conviction.
In conclusion, I would like to emphasise that the FET college sector is crucial in promoting educational and socioeconomic transformation. They straddle macroeconomic, labour market and human resource development. The FET colleges are crucial to the economy. They facilitate the critical junction between general education and training, and higher education and training.
It is for this reason that it has been crucial to have this process of recapitalisation of colleges. It represents the most meaningful policy initiative to realise the goals of an FET college system that is educationally responsible in providing a holistic educational experience grounded in strong content knowledge and the fundamentals, as well as being responsive to the needs of industry. I thank you. [Applause.]
The MINISTER OF EDUCATION: Chairperson, I think the hon members are applauding members very quietly. It is perhaps because they don’t appreciate the importance of this piece of legislation. We have said: Let the skills revolution begin. Now is the time for the skills revolution for the young people of our country. [Applause.] Let us not forget that many young people in South Africa were denied the opportunity to acquire intermediate skills training, access to high-level technology and a place in the economy of our country. This legislation creates that opportunity and should be welcomed purely on that basis.
Another matter, however, is the intervention that hon members have referred to concerning the R1,9 billion recapitalisation of the FET college sector. Hon members, before the recapitalisation, our colleges did not have access to information technology. They were not all networked; today they are. They didn’t have proper financial management systems; today they do. [Applause.] They didn’t have proper human resource procedures; today they do. They were training young people on the wrong equipment, eg a mechanical engineer for BMW, Mazda or even Nissan. Today they have the most up-to-date equipment for the mechanical engineering programmes. [Applause.] That’s the kind of recapitalisation that has occurred.
That change was necessary. It is now in place. It’s not been a careless process. It’s a process that began a long time ago. I keep reminding hon members that what we are doing is strengthening, consolidating and enhancing quality, because many of these processes have been part of the ANC’s agenda anyway. But the rot that we had to deal with was so deep that it will take a long time to get to the point where we are able to implement.
Former Ministers of Education have begun the process of putting in place the matters we are concluding today. These have been necessary processes. But they do confirm that we are indeed able to set about producing the nature of human resource skills that South Africa requires. We are doing that and any person who votes against this legislation is against young people in South Africa having access to information and communications technology training. That person is against young people in South Africa having access to a broad range of engineering programmes, and is against young people in South Africa having access to construction programmes across the board.
Hon members keep referring to 13 programmes. Hon Boinamo, it is 13 cognate economic disciplines that have 52 programmes within them. So the amount of 13 is a bit of a misnomer. If you have construction as a macro framing programme name, under it there may be 23 different skills areas in which you get training. So let’s not talk of 13 as a small number of programmes. It is merely a framing nomenclature. There is a great deal of detail embedded under that. I think that’s what we all must accept. [Applause.]
I am very pleased that, for the first time, it’s possible that the hon Boinamo will support a piece of legislation that I have brought to the House. I am excited at that possibility. However, we’ll see in a few moments whether my excitement is worthy of the name.
I must thank hon members again for the work that they have clearly done. They have understood our intentions and have clearly elaborated them to this House and to the members who may not be part of the education portfolio committee. These are public colleges that we are dealing with. They will be publicly funded. The fact of the change of governance and employment arrangements doesn’t mean we are abrogating government’s responsibility to continue to provide funding.
Hon Pheko, we address the matter of poverty by, for the first time, as from 2007, having a bursary scheme which is state-supported regarding the FET colleges sector. I hope your support for students who are poor is going to cause you tonight to go into the Internet to the Department of Education’s website to download the norms and standards for FET college funding that we published some months ago; and will cause you to write a comment to me to say you support those norms and standards because they address the needs of poor students, specifically. So I hope your support for the poor will result in action in commenting on steps that government intends to take in order to address these very areas. I really urge hon members and the public that we should not, when legislation is published for public comment, neglect to comment and then, down the line, when we wish to frame an Act, say, “We were not consulted”, when in fact, there were eight months or longer for you to actually state your viewpoints.
Hon Mpontshane, we have taken a look at all the colleges. You will be surprised at how many I have visited. We are aware of some of the inadequacies on a number of them. This is what the recapitalisation seeks to achieve. So we are attending to those colleges that might be weak. And we are looking at how we can actually achieve this important thing I keep talking about, which is the differentiation of programme offerings.
There are certain of our colleges in some of our rural areas which cannot do all 52 programmes. We need to allow them to specialise. We have identified these and we say we will strengthen in this particular area. This Bill, again, will allow us to achieve that level of niche excellence and programme differentiation but, certainly, we will address these areas.
I disagree with you fundamentally in your view that the recapitalisation is moving at a snail’s pace. You are absolutely wrong. You have not been fully briefed and I think you haven’t been attending the briefings we have been giving to the portfolio committee. I will certainly ask my department to provide you with some information.
However, I fully heard you when you said we must watch the implementation. You are absolutely correct because it is between policy and implementation that we sometimes trip up. Therefore it is a matter that we are paying close attention to. It is for that reason that once we had got to the point where we agreed to support specific college plans, I established an independent monitoring committee to visit each one of the 50 colleges to assist me in understanding whether indeed they are able to execute as we require. As some members have said, one of the weak points was the fact that not all our colleges have financial managers within them. So the receipt of a large amount of money is an area that we have to actually look at fairly carefully in ensuring that they can administer and manage the funds as we would desire. So we are paying attention to each of these areas because, hon members, we can no longer afford to fail to succeed to provide South Africa with the growth and expansion in the intermediate skills that this country requires.
There is a large number of jobs available out there but young people are not trained in those fields. The reason that young persons who are emerging from colleges have not been taken into employment or entrepreneurship opportunity is because the training was not relevant to the demand. So training and jobs must in some way speak to each other. Our processes begin to achieve just that.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr G Q M Doidge): Order, hon Minister, I regret that your time has expired.
The MINISTER OF EDUCATION: Chairperson, in conclusion, let me thank members. I am very happy that the members generally appear to support our legislation. I thank the portfolio committee for the serious piece of work it has done and I thank the stakeholders for the commentary and support that they gave to the process. Thank you, Chairperson. [Applause.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr G Q M Doidge): That concludes the debate. Are there any objections to the Bill being read a second time?
Mr M J ELLIS: Mr Chairman, despite the extraordinary attempts on the part of the Minister of Education and the hon Mr Randall van den Heever, I have to inform the House that the DA will not be opposing the Bill. [Laughter.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr G Q M Doidge): Thank you, Mr Ellis.
Debate concluded.
Bill read a second time.
SIXTEEN DAYS OF ACTIVISM FOR NO VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND CHILDREN
(Subject for Discussion)
Mr M WATERS: Chairperson and hon members, the 16 Days for No Violence Against Women and children starts on Saturday, 25 November. While it is important that we debate such issues in forums such as this one, we should not fall into the trap of believing that we can solve the problem with an annual debate. We, as parliamentarians, have a responsibility to ensure that the state agencies set up to help victims and bring perpetrators to book are resourced sufficiently in order to fulfil their mandates.
The crime stats speak for themselves. There were 54 926 reported rapes last year, and 23 453 of these victims were children. That, hon members, is more than 64 children raped per day. The ANC in its 1999, 2004 and 2006 election manifestos stated that crimes against women and children were a top priority and, given the frequency with which the ruling party makes this promise, one would expect them to actually keep it. The DA has found that this is not the case.
The family violence, child protection and sexual offences units, or the FCS units, were established so that these heinous crimes could be investigated by dedicated officers with empathy for victims. But in October this year the government began dispersing the members of these units to ordinary police stations. Police Commissioner Selby Bokaba assured South Africans that: “We are not closing them down, we are migrating these skills and expertise to station level.”
Recently, I personally conducted a station-by-station investigation of the new locations of the FCS offices or units in Gauteng to see whether the commissioner was being honest. Unfortunately, I found the answer to be no. There are 36 cluster stations across Gauteng to which FCS cases must now be referred. I found that in only three of these stations could FCS officers still do their jobs properly. The DA’s investigation exposed the fact that far from expanding access to these services, this new policy makes it more difficult for women and children to get help and protection from the police.
In theory, each of the 36 cluster stations is supposed to have an allocated group of FSC-trained officers. So, did this happen? The reality is that 11 cluster stations out of 36, almost one third, have no FCS units at all. In the cluster stations where there are FCS officers, there’s an extremely high level of dissatisfaction. We were told that not one police officer had been consulted as to which cluster station he or she was to be moved to.
Some officers complained of being treated “like criminals” during the moving process. At one station, we were told that they could not see how SAPS could say that crimes against women and children were a top priority when so little consideration had been given to the restructuring.
The Minister of Safety and Security made a promise that FCS officers would be able to focus on FCS cases and would not be expected to take on ordinary police cases. However, we found in at least two police stations - Sebokeng and Katlehong - that FCS police officers were now expected to investigate general crimes.
As far as the distribution of policing resources is concerned, FCS officers need much the same equipment and resources that ordinary police officers need. It is also critical that they have a lockable cupboard where dockets and evidence can be kept safe.
However, we found that at only three cluster stations - Hillbrow, Johannesburg Central and Sophiatown - were FCS officers provided with all or almost all of the necessary police resources to allow them to do their jobs. But it was easy to see why this was the case. These three units were not moved from their combined Braamfontein offices, and have simply retained all their resources, unlike the other units.
On the other hand, units that were previously well resourced with playrooms, interviewing rooms, offices and telephones, such as Pretoria and Soweto, were now forced to move. These premises now stand empty.
During our investigation a problem that was repeatedly raised by FCS officers was the lack of office space. In most of the stations, one office was being shared between many people. In 16 cluster stations, FCS officers had neither sufficient office space nor telephone lines and many officers were using their own cars as an office.
Some examples of the trying circumstances officers found themselves in include the following. At Moroka station in Soweto, which has the highest number of reported FCS crimes in Gauteng, they were not given one single office to sit in – so the police members were physically forced to carry their dockets with them at all times.
In Katlehong, we were told that, owing to the lack of private office space, the suspect and the victim sometimes had to sit together in the same office, and that there was no such thing as a “private statement”. [Interjections.] I’ll take it that the Deputy Minister has been to all these FCS units, and that’s why she is howling from the sides. In Sebokeng, the 19 FCS officers were given no office space at all and the one inspector is now using the broom cupboard as his office.
In Soshanguve, the FCS officers were crammed four into an office with no phones. In Daveyton, we found FCS officers using “zozo” huts at the side of the police station, and three of these huts did not have locks – so they couldn’t lock away the dockets. In Tembisa, 10 officers were sharing one “zozo” hut with no phone.
In Germiston, five FCS officers were sharing one office containing two desks, three chairs and one phone line. Their dockets were lying all over the floor. In Springs, FCS officers were given office space in an old building, which looked more like old cells, and had to go to the main building to make telephone calls.
In Mamelodi East, FCS officers had to use their own private cellphones to make calls. In Pretoria Central there were no offices at all - four FCS officers were in a hall while others were squatting with other police members.
It is outrageous for this government to pretend that crimes against women and children are a top priority when it cannot even ensure that FCS police officers have office space where they can store dockets and investigate cases. How difficult is it to plan ahead to ensure that phone lines are actually installed?
Crime kits and lock-up facilities for evidence are both crucial to building up a case. But during our visit we found that 19 of the 25 cluster stations did not have crime kits at all. This means that DNA evidence cannot be collected and attending a crime scene is virtually pointless.
Furthermore, we found that only seven stations had adequate lock-up facilities for dockets and evidence, and that dockets were frequently stored on desks, on floors and in cars and often in full public view. In Vereeniging, firearms that were part of the evidence in a particular case were lying on the floor.
A critical part of the FCS officer’s job is to provide a supportive and secure environment for victims of social violence. Social workers need to be available to counsel and assess victims and prepare them for court appearances, and they need quiet, private space in which victims will not feel intimidated in which to do this. It is also important to have a victims’ room where traumatised victims of abuse and violence can be attended to far away from the general rush of ordinary police business.
Our survey showed that not one of the new cluster stations had been supplied with the full range of forensic support facilities. Only eight had forensic social workers and very few of these social workers had an office in which to sit down and actually assess the victims. This means that where children or victims of assault must be interviewed, the forensic social worker now has to negotiate for office space, or do it in public view. There is not a single cluster station in the whole of Gauteng that has a separate FCS victims’ room where FCS police officers can take a victim’s statement.
Many officers reported that their new offices were intimidating to children. In Mamelodi East, the FCS officers were stationed in the parade room and there was a constant flow of police officers through this room, because they had to go to the adjacent balcony to smoke, as it was a smoking balcony. So the children had no privacy at all in which to give statements.
In Atteridgeville, the entrance to the FCS office was blocked by officers certifying documents. This meant that there was usually a large crowd of people around the entrance. Again, this was reported to be intimidating to the victims, particularly children.
We were often told that this situation was worse than the previous circumstances. Meadowlands officers in Soweto, for example, reported that they had previously been stationed at the IKhaya Lethemba Centre in Soweto where they and the FCS officers from the other three Soweto units had all the facilities they needed. These offices were now standing empty.
The Minister of Safety and Security stated in a reply to a parliamentary question of mine that the migration was undertaken in terms of the principles contained in a business plan and with attention to the social crime rates in the areas of the different clusters.
However, when one compares the crime rates at the various cluster stations to the available resources; it is difficult to understand the rational basis for the decisions made. It is clear from my investigation that resources are available to FCS officers on a highly uneven basis and that there is little correlation between the need for an FCS service and the resources made available to it.
Hillbrow, Johannesburg Central and Sophiatown are all fortunate to be relatively well equipped with resources, although not one of them ranks at the top of the scale in terms of social crime rates. On the other hand, there are many stations which have serious crime problems, but which do not have the resources that more peaceful stations do. For example, Moroka in Soweto shares joint first place with Meadowlands for crimes reported during the last financial year, but it is ranked 24th out of 25 in terms of availability of resources. Sebokeng is number 6 in terms of crimes reported, but only number 20 in availability of resources.
Even if it is necessary to accept an environment of scarce resources, every effort should be made to ensure that the cluster stations that have the greatest need for FCS services are the best equipped with the tools they need to do the job. Unfortunately, this is not the case.
It is clear from the DA’s investigation that the overwhelming majority of FCS cluster stations have nothing close to what is needed to provide a proper investigation and support service for victims of sexual assault and family violence. In fact, the migration of skills has been retrogressive as far as the availability of an FCS service is concerned.
Prior to the migration, every FCS case was at least investigated by an FCS officer. Sadly, today this is not the case. In fact, 22 200 cases will not be investigated by an FCS officer now in Gauteng. Most of the FCS officers we spoke to said the change had had an immediate and negative effect on their ability to handle cases relating to children.
KwaZulu-Natal is the next province that will be facing the migration of FCS officers to cluster police stations. The DA sincerely hopes that the ANC will not strip them bare of their resources as in Gauteng, but rather give effect to their election promise that crimes against women and children are indeed a top priority.
Today is no better than yesterday, and tomorrow can only be worse. I thank you. [Applause.]
The DEPUTY MINISTER FOR PROVINCIAL AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT: Chairperson, hon members of Parliament, ladies and gentlemen, unfortunately, I am not going to respond to the previous speaker, because I am not the Minister of Safety and Security and I’m leading an awareness campaign, I don’t deal with statistics on police stations.
The only thing that I am thinking is that it is a pity I didn’t hear him saying, “I also took the media along to see these police stations”. I am really very disappointed because that seems to be the style of the DA lately, taking the media along with them. Maybe he is trying to outsmart the hon Mr Douglas Gibson. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr G Q M Doidge): Order! Please proceed, hon Deputy Minister.
The DEPUTY MINISTER FOR PROVINCIAL AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT: Chairperson, I would first like to thank the Presidency for entrusting me with this huge responsibility. The responsibility, as I have made clear from the onset, is not going to be mine alone. In fact, I think all the citizens of this country, black, white, young and old, are equally responsible for making sure that the protection of women and children is realised.
I would also like to thank my predecessor for having done such outstanding work in leading the previous campaign, and, because of this stunning work, raising awareness. The issue of women’s protection is now firmly on the national agenda. As a result, I have not changed anything she has done, but only added a few dimensions to the campaign.
It is sad that in this day and age, in our twelfth year of democracy, we are still standing here debating the issue of women and children’s protection. For me - and I hope all women feel the same – women, having been part and parcel of the struggle for freedom, should be free today like they were when we went to the voting stations.
With this in mind, you will realise that women and children are still not free to walk in the streets at any given time at night, and you will equally realise that this is not in line with the vision of those women who marched to the Union Buildings 50 years ago, which you know nothing of. [Interjections.]
If women still have to mind how short and revealing their skirts and pants are for fear of being misconstrued as applying for rape, you will agree with me that this is not being free. If women still have to mind how much alcohol their drinks contain when in the company of men for fear of getting drunk and thereby justifying that they can be raped, you will agree with me that this is not being free.
What is painful is that the most vulnerable women are those who stay in the informal settlements and rural areas. This is why I have asked all those involved that the campaign takes a different turn this time around. There is no better way of doing this than to take it to the local government spheres.
In this regard, I have written to all the Premiers so that they can ensure that the campaign has meaning and is visible to ordinary women of this country. I am glad to report to you, hon members, that the Premiers’ responses were very enthusiastic.
It is when the issue of women’s protection remains on the daily agenda of all municipalities and is spoken about at ward committee level that we stand a chance of ending this violence. It is when ordinary women know what to do and where to go when faced with this scourge that we shall say that we are now on the right path to ending this violence.
As I said, this campaign is not mine. I have approached the traditional leaders, through their structures, to come on board and help us demystify some of the bizarre cultural claims that the perpetrators usually use to justify their behaviour. I am glad to report that the traditional leaders are all on board and that their programmes will run parallel with this campaign.
The women who work and stay on the farms are by far the most vulnerable. They normally suffer what I can call double abuse, from the farm owners themselves as well as from their husbands or partners. This is why the campaign has included the farmworkers awareness programme. In this programme, we challenge the farm owners to partner with government in fighting this scourge. I am once again happy to report to this House that we have been to Ladysmith in KwaZulu-Natal to launch the programme last month, on 15 October, and I may add that it was a huge success.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the local municipality of Umnambithi, the office of the Premier in KwaZulu-Natal and all the departments that participated in this programme. May I also add that the event was not only about raising awareness, but it was also linked to the notion of bringing government to the people. The departments that were in attendance provided free service to people. I would like specifically to thank the farming associations of Ladysmith for their co-operation and participation, but most importantly, for their commitment to ending this violence against women and children. We would indeed like to see this programme infiltrating all the farming communities.
A problem of this nature, with such complexities, cannot be the responsibility of government alone. In this regard, we have called upon the private sector, sister departments, NGOs and CBOs, including men’s organisations, to partner with the government in fighting this scourge. All of these have registered their undying commitment and support for the campaign.
This is indeed promising, because it is when we employ these multidimensional approaches that women and children can look forward with the greatest hope to their total safety in this age of hope. Yes, we have galvanised support from the stakeholders I have just mentioned, but the most important partners in this campaign are the communities. If communities were to realise that the issue of women’s and children’s protection is equally their business, I guarantee hon members that we could arrive at our destination sooner than we think.
An offence to a woman should be regarded as an offence to that community and therefore needs to be reported. I am glad that the law enforcement agencies are now treating the issue of violence against women and children seriously and that, as we speak, the Sexual Offences Bill is with the Justice Portfolio Committee, which, I am told, is viewing the results of the public hearings process. We hope that this Bill will give effect to the declaration we made at the Kopanong conference in May 2006, and that is that it is time for our progressive Constitution to work hard to protect our women and children.
As we are about to embark on our traditional 16 Dys of Activism campaign, activities starting on 25 November 2006 in Limpopo and ending in the Northern Cape on 10 December 2006, I appeal to all those who haven’t formally approached us to consider themselves partners of the campaign and to commit themselves to doing something in their own individual capacities to end violence against women and children.
To the perpetrators, it does not mean that after 10 December you can start abusing women and children. I further call upon the media, especially women reporters, to remain vigilant on this matter. Most importantly, I challenge all political parties in this House to ensure that they have programmes that are aimed at ending violence against women and children. That way, we’d be likely to win this battle. I thank you. [Applause.]
Ms C N Z ZIKALALA: Hon Chairperson, the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children has been an annual and endorsed campaign since
- It was practised then and continues up to today. It commences on 25 November and runs on until 10 December each year.
The objective of this campaign is to raise awareness of the violence perpetrated against women and children. In addition to breaking the silence amongst women and children who are always victims of the situation, we need to empower and assure them that they are not alone but someone out there hears their cries.
There are programmes which are designed especially to deal with these issues of domestic violence, women and children abuse in any form. Such programmes are funded by the government to help our communities. These programmes provide counselling and shelter for the abused women and children.
The IFP hopes that the 16 Days of Activism will bring a change of heart to those men who continually believe that womenfolk are there for their sexual desires, and who believe that they can rape and beat them for fulfilment of their desires. In most cases which are reported, the victims know their attackers, since in most incidences perpetrators are brothers, fathers, uncles, neighbours and relatives.
However, in order to deal with these issues, women have to speak out about their lived experiences. They must break the silence. But children are the responsibility of society and they must be cared for. Women, as adults, have rights and deserve the right to their bodily self-determination. Women need to be empowered on what is actually violence against them.
Seemingly, other women out there do not understand what abuse is all about, unfortunately. They need to be empowered and educated because for them abuse is all about being beaten or sexually abused, whereas there are many forms for abusive behaviour they encounter in their lives which they do not report. They should report every cruelty they encounter, whether it be sexually or otherwise.
Bomama, madodakazi, musani ukubhala nibuye nicime. Akufuneki nincengwe uma senifake isimmangalo. Akufuneki ukuthi nibuye niye kocima amacala, nibuyele khona kwaGenesisi. Ngiyabonga. [Ihlombe.] (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)
[To the mothers and daughters out there, we say please, just do one thing at a time. Do not allow yourselves to be cajoled into withdrawing cases after laying charges against the perpetrators. It is not good for you to go back to the police stations to withdraw the complaints filed against the perpetrators and go back to square one. I thank you. [Applause.]]
Ms N C NKABINDE: Hon Chairperson, hon members, today, in the Johannesburg High Court, each of the 261 charges are read out to an accused man. Amongst these charges are several dozens of alleged rapes as well as kidnapping and other acts of violence and abuse aimed at women. What these cases highlight is that in our society, there are people who hate women and who will not hesitate to inflict violence and abuse upon them.
We will never dispute the necessity or correctness of the 16 Days of Activism campaign. But, simultaneously, we should ask whether this campaign and other efforts are succeeding. We must not delude ourselves that because we are expending a great deal of energy on a campaign, it will necessarily be successful. The time has come for the 16 Days of Activism campaign to become a time not only of heightened awareness but also of heightened public debates and discussions about how we as society can respond to the murderers, abusive and violent people who have no regard or respect for fellow citizens.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms C-S Botha): Hon member, your time has expired. [Applause.]
Mr L W GREYLING: Chairperson, former President Nelson Mandela once said, “The children who sleep in the street, reduced to begging to make a living, are testimony to an unfinished job.”
As we see in another 16 Days of Activism, we should all be ashamed that we have not yet finished the job. We should also be ashamed that this government is only meeting 3% of the funding required to fulfil its constitutional obligations to meet the needs of children. This lack of funding is felt most acutely by those children who line up on the streets as a result of abusive and poverty-stricken home environments.
There is no such thing as street children. There are only children who are in desperate need of care and healing for the abuse they have suffered. Last Thursday night, I was at the Caledon street police station where five children had been rounded up by the local police. They did not know where to take these kids, as there’s currently no sustainable solution for them.
Why is it that we leave the police and private security companies to deal with the problem that should be dealt with by social services? In all of the different round-ups of these children that I had to intervene in, there’s not been a single social worker inside. We need to urgently rethink the manner in which we treat abused children in this country. They need our support and healing …
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms C-S Botha): Hon member, your time has expired.
Mr L W GREYLING: We as a society must build such facilities urgently.
Nkskz X C MAKASI: Mhlalingaphambili, kungovuyo kuthi kulo nyaka ukuba iintsuku ezili-16 zemigushuzo yokulwela amalungelo abafazi nabantwana zifike ngexesha lezikhumbuzo ezibaluleke kakhulu kwimizabalazo yethu yokulwela umasilingane nenkululeko yeli lizwe. Sikhumbula umngcelele owawubanjwe ngamakhosikazi angama-20 000 esiya kwiZakhiwo zoMdibaniso, ii- Union Buildings, kwiminyaka engama-50 eyadlulayo, ngomhla we-9 kuAgasti ka- 1956.
Sikhumbula kananjalo abafundi abaphumela ezitalatweni besilwela ukuba banganyanzeliswa ngeBantu Education neAfrikaans ngoJuni ka-1976. Kwakhona sikhumbula iminyaka eli-10 yoMgaqo-siseko woMzantsi Afrika kwakunye nokumiselwa kwe-Progressive Women’s Movement ngoAgasti ka-2006.
Xa sisithi asibufuni ubundlobongela obujoliswe kumakhosikazi nabantwana asibhekisi kwezi ntsuku zili-16 kuphela. Sithi ubundlobongela mabungenziwa iintsuku ezingama-365, njengoko watshoyo uMongameli wethu weli lizwe, uThabo Mbeki.
Urhulumente uzimisele ukuqwalasela zonke iinkxalabo zamakhosikazi kuwo onke amaphulo awenzayo. Ubundlobongela obuchaphazela amakhosikazi nabantwana asingomgushuzo kwaye ingengombhiyozo wosuku olunye. Kufuneka sibulwe sibuncothule neengcambu kwiindawo esihlala kuzo.
Kule minyaka ili-12 sikhululekile urhulumente uyenzile imithetho ekhusela amalungelo amakhosikazi kunye nabantwana, imithetho efana neDomestic Violence Act, iMaintenance Act nokuhlonitshwa kwemitshato yesiNtu.
Kananjalo lo rhulumente uqeqeshe abantu ukuze baphume iphulo bafundise abantu ngamalungelo abo ekuhlaleni. Le mithetho ikhona nabantu bafundisiwe ngayo kodwa kukhona baxhatshwazwayo.
Besiye emaphondweni sifuna ukuqonda ukuba ngaba ingxaki ilele phi kwaye iyintoni eyenza ukuba kungapheli ukuxhatshazwa kwamakhosikazi nabantwana. Sifumanise ukuba ubukhulu becala oomama abaphangeli, ngoko amakhosikazi athi akuxhatshazwa avule amatyala, aphinde athi sele ewavulile awacime esithi: “Xa ndimbambile lo myeni wam ndiza kutya ntoni nabantwana bam?” Kufuneka siqwalasele ukuba loo nto singayilungisa njani na. Kumele sijonge ukuba angavuleka njani amathuba emisebenzi alungiselelwe amakhosikazi. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[Mrs X C MAKASI: Chairperson, it is a great pleasure for us that the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children corresponds with the celebrations for equal rights and freedom in South Africa. We remember the protest march of 20 000 women who, on 9 August 1956, 50 years ago, marched to the Union Buildings.
We are reminded of learners who went to the streets fighting against Bantu Education and Afrikaans in June 1976. We are once more reminded of the 10 years of the recognition of the Constitution of South Africa and the establishment of the Progressive Women’s Movement in August 2006.
When we pronounce that we are against women and children abuse we are not referring to the 16 Days of Activism only. We say the protest against abuse of women and children must be observed for 365 days as stated by our President, Thabo Mbeki.
The government is prepared to look at problems encountered by women in all their endeavours. The activism against women and children abuse should not be a once-off activity. We must fight and eliminate abuse in our communities.
In these 12 years of freedom government has passed laws that protect women and children’s rights such as the Domestic Violence Act and the respect of customary marriages.
Furthermore, this government has started a plan that promotes human rights in the communities. These laws are in place, and people are made aware of them, but the abuse is still prevailing. We visited the provinces trying to ascertain where the problem lies and what perpetuates it in our communities. We discovered that most women are unemployed; therefore they open cases and withdraw them because they is in prison. We must look at how we can rectify that. We need to see how we can provide employment opportunities for women.]
We will not be shy to boast about achievements made by our government, but we will also not be naïve in our boasting. Thanks to the foundational National Crime Prevention Strategy, we have continued to witness, since 12 years ago, the establishment, development and related implementation of various strategies and programmes to correct the imbalances of the past. We have provided for the delivery of quality and professional services to our women and children in a manner that shows respect for the poor and the vulnerable, while advancing the principles of human dignity and integrity.
This government is not only enacting legislation, but monitoring for compliance is also imperative for maximum effect. The Independent Complaints Directorate has been mandated to monitor and institute disciplinary proceedings, should a member of the SAPS fail to comply with the obligations of the Domestic Violence Act.
We have seen the integrated justice system being transformed and strengthened so that the needs of victims are met. Special sexual offences courts have been established. Thus, the DA should not whine about the abolishment of special units.
The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, the SA Police Service, the Department of Social Development and the Department of Health have all come together and established several Thuthuzela care centres across the country. At these centres, victims have access to all services, including police, counselling, doctors, social workers and prosecutors.
The main objective of these centres is to eliminate secondary victimisation, where it is ensured that the victim is not further traumatised in the process of reporting an incident. It is also ensured that information needed to secure a prosecution and conviction is passed seamlessly from one person to another.
Despite these remarkable achievements, related challenges remain. Probably the main challenge that is faced by the government pertaining to sexual offences is, ironically, the high rate of case withdrawal by the victims of abuse and violence.
Despite the initiatives of facilitating needs-based programmes when women are still in shock and trauma, too scared or intimidated to testify in court or intimidated to withdraw the cases, still, many victims opt to withdraw or not lay a charge at all against the perpetrators. Owona ndoqo kule nyewe kukuba sizixelele singamakhosikazi ukuba ukuxhatshazwa nobundlobongela obujoliswe kumakhosikazi nabantwana asiyongxaki enokuthi isonjululwe ngurhulumente yedwa. Sisonke siluluntu, singabahlali, simelwe kukuphakama sime ngeenyawo. Kufuneka siyiqonde le ngxaki ukuba yeyoluntu lwasekuhlaleni. Ubunganga bamapolisa abunakusinceda ukuba asisebenzisani nawo. Kufuneka intsebenziswano phakathi kwamapolisa, abantu, urhulumente wephondo nowasekhaya - sonke sisebenzisane.
Iiprojekthi ezisungulwa ngulo rhulumente wethu kufuneka zifikelele emaphandleni, ngoba kulapho igquba khona indlala. Siyazi ukuba kulapho iingxaki neenzingo zikhoyo. Amakhosikazi asemaphandleni nawo kufuneka ezifumene ezi nkonzo, angaweli amahlathi nemilambo ukuze abe nokufumana iinkonzo.
Xa ndigqibezela, Mhlalingaphambili, ndifuna ukugxininisa kwinto yokuba ukhuseleko nozinzo phakathi kwamakhosikazi nabantwana, kwanabo bakhubazekileyo, luxhomekeke kuphuhliso nokuphakanyiswa kwabo ukuze kananjalo kumiliselwe izimilo ezizizo kuloo madoda axhaphaza ze adlwengule amakhosikazi nabantwana. Ndiyabulela, Mhlalingaphambili. [Kwaqhwatywa.] (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[The central point in this debate is that violence and abuse against women and children is not a problem that can be solved by government alone. All the communities are expected to stand up and fight this. We must understand this problem as our problem. The might of the police cannot help us if we are not working with them. Police and community need to work together including provincial government and local government – we all need to work together.
Projects initiated by our government must reach rural areas because that is where poverty is prevalent. That is where intricacy and difficulties are prevailing. Rural women must enjoy these services and not travel long distances crossing rivers and forests in order to obtain services.
Finally, Chairperson I want to emphasise that security and stability amongst women, children and the disabled depend on their development and the restoration of their dignity, whilst instilling morality in men who abuse and rape women and children. Thank you, Chairperson. [Applause.]]
Mrs C DUDLEY: Chair, with each passing year, the 16 Days of Activism campaign intensifies, and with each passing year, the number of incidents of violence against women and children increases by leaps and bounds.
In 2006 many communities rallied together around the common cause of addressing the proliferation of sexual and violent acts against children. Calls for the death penalty for perpetrators of child abuse were rampant, and community leaders and ordinary South Africans from all walks of life gave vent to their anger and concern in both the print and electronic media.
It is a matter of grave concern to the ACDP that this heightened awareness about violence did not arise from the expensive and time-consuming 16 Days of Activism campaign, but from the fact that crimes against women and children escalated to such an extent that a point of crisis was reached. In this regard, one has to commend the media for fulfilling a crucial obligation to the public by reporting relentlessly on these tragic events.
While the ACDP appreciates media efforts to maintain awareness of gender- based violence, we nevertheless urge the media to step up efforts by ensuring an end to the promotion of stereotyped images of women as sex objects.
The ACDP supports calls for the 16 Days of Activism to be replaced by commitment 365 days of the year. Thank you.
Ms M M MDLALOSE: Chairperson, colleagues, the government implements a robust approach during the 16 Days of Activism to guarantee visibility of this issue. Nadeco challenges all government departments to implement the same strategy during the 365 days campaign to achieve a lasting impact. It is our duty and obligation as Members of Parliament to lead and educate people by implementing strategic campaigns and projects right through the year. Ake sibuyise ubuntu. Asifundise abantwana bethu ukuze bathande ubuntu nempilo enhle. Asifunde ukusebenzela ukuthula, uxolo nobulungiswa futhi sikhulume ngezinkinga esibhekene nazo ukuze zingabikhona izindlela zobugebengu nokuhlushwa kwabanye abantu. Ngiyabonga. (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)
[Let us bring back ubuntu. Let us teach our children to love ubuntu and the good life. Let us teach ourselves to work for peace, forgiveness and justice and be able to talk about the problems we are facing so that we can do away with social ills like crime and the abuse of other people. I thank you.]
Rre P H K DITSHETELO: Modulasetulo, re le UCDP, re kopa gore re boele kwa re latlhileng tsela gona, ka gore se se diragalang mo nakong e ga se se se re tshwanetseng. Re mo nakong ya go lebagana le borre kgatlhanong le go tlhorisa bomme le basetsana. Borra, ikileleng le tlogele go tlhola le keteka bomme le bana ba basetsana. Ithuteng maitseo a mantle mo mokokong. Mokoko ga o ke o itaya koko e tshegadi kgotsa o palama dikokwanyana.
A re rateng bommaetsho ka go nna matsetseleko mo go ba direleng tse di molemo le go ba itumedisa. Re kokoroge jaaka phikoko kgotsa jaaka rotwe yo mogolo a na le losika lwa gagwe. Re sireletse bana ba rona ba basetsana kgatlhanong le maitsholo a a makgwakgwa mo direng tsa bona. Borra, a re tshwaraneng ka diatla kgatlhanong le petelelo ya bomme le basetsana. Re ikitlanye, re lome meno, re lwantshe sera se se tseneletseng bomme le basetsana ka mekgwa yotlhe e re ka e kgonang.
Mokgwa wa bokolobe ga o a tshwanela borre ba tsamaiso ya demokerasi. A re nneng dikai tse dintle mo setšhabeng. Borra, ratang basadi ba lona jaaka Morena Jesu Keresete a ratile lefatshe. (Translation of Setswana speech follows.)
[Mr P H K DITSHETELO: Chairperson, the ACDP would like to review the matter in order to know where we went wrong, because the fact of the matter is that we have lost it. We are currently faced by challenges relating to the abuse of women and girls. We would like to make a call to men to abstain and stop assaulting women and girls. They should learn a lesson from the cock which does not assault a hen and does not mate with its chicks.
Let us appreciate our women by doing good things for them which hopefully might eventually make them happy. We should be proud of them like a peacock or an elderly male baboon, which always takes pride in its family. We should protect our girls against their perpetrators. Gentlemen, let us unite against sexual abuse of women and girls. We should be determined to fight this monster that terrorises our women and girls with whatever means we have.
We should not allow immoral behaviour to bedevil our men in this age of democracy. Let us be exemplary in our communities. Let us love our women as Jesus Christ loved the world.]
Dr S E M PHEKO: Chairperson, obviously the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children is only symbolic; it’s only to create awareness of the problem. Since this problem is largely brought by men onto women, the PAC submits that there must be an intensive education to make men realise how important it is that they should respect their women, treat them well and defend them.
Men should not be the source of violence against women and children. Punishment of the perpetrators who inflict violence on women and children is called for, but the past few years have shown that it is not a very effective deterrent to be the only remedy for use in this problem.
This nation has also been traumatised for far too long. People were dehumanised. It is important that men who are violent against women and children are assisted to regain their self-esteem and human dignity. Counselling must be one of the methods used. Brave men do not ill-treat women and children. Brave men defend women and children. This is the message that must be sent out to the nation. Thank you. [Time expired.]
Mrs D M MOROBI: Chairperson, Deputy Minister and hon members, violence against women is a form of discrimination and violation of human rights. It causes untold misery, cutting short lives, and leaves countless women living in pain and fear in all the countries of the world. It harms families across generations, impoverishes communities and reinforces other forms of violence throughout societies.
Violence against women stops them from fulfilling their potential, restricts economic growth and works against development. The scope and extent of violence against women is a reflection of the degree and persistence of discrimination that women continue to face. Therefore it can only be eliminated by addressing discrimination, promoting women’s equality and empowerment, and ensuring that women’s human rights are fulfilled.
Violence against women is not confined to a specific culture, religion, country, or a particular group of women within a society. The different manifestation of such violence and women’s personal experiences are however shaped by factors such as ethnicity, class, age, sexual orientation, disability, nationality or religion.
Women are subjected to violence in a wide range of settings that include families, communities and state custody. Violence constitutes a continuum across the lifespan of women from before birth to old age. It cuts across both the public and the private spheres.
Violence against women emanates from historically unequal power relations between men and women, individuals or family behavioural patterns, including histories of abuse, and has also been correlated with an increased risk of violence.
The most common form of violence experienced by women globally is intimate partner violence, which sometimes leads to death. Also widespread are harmful traditional practices, including early and forced marriages and female genital mutilation.
Violence against women has far-reaching consequences for women, children and society as a whole. Those who experience violence suffer from a range of health problems and their ability to earn a living and to participate in public life is diminished. Their children are significantly more at risk of health problems, poor school performance and behavioural disturbances.
Violence against women can be defined as any act of abuse, intended or unintended, of verbal, emotional, psychological, sexual or physical form, including threats of such acts as depriving one’s liberty. It includes violence outside the family, intimidation at work and in educational institutions, witch-hunting, trafficking in women and forced prostitution. The fact that children, the mentally disabled and other disabled women who are vulnerable to sexual violence find it difficult to testify in court should be given special attention. Government should play a significant role in examining systems of investigation, prosecution, and the way in which media cover sexual violence, and take appropriate measures to minimise further trauma for victims of sexual violence.
This year marks the 16th year of the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children. This is an international campaign aimed at raising awareness regarding violence against women. It raises awareness about gender-based violence as a human rights issue at local, national and international levels. This campaign also strengthens local work around violence against women; providing forums in which organisers can develop and share new and effective strategies; and establishing a clear link between local and international work to end violence against women.
The exact statistics on the level of gender-based violence are not known due to underreporting. For the year 2006, the theme is, “Act against abuse”. The theme gives individuals a chance to get involved, and it encourages men in workplaces, local clubs, businesspeople and NGOs to say “no” to all forms of violence against women and children.
In South Africa, President Thabo Mbeki made a call to consider the violence against women and children not only for 16 days but for the whole year. He said there should be 365 days of no violence against women and children, as this violation occurs daily.
This year’s campaign seeks to revisit and strengthen the human rights focus of work on gender-based violence against women. It also hopes to look at the many obstacles that women in our communities face and nations that interact with violence against women.
As we begin our campaign on 25 November annually, this day was chosen to commemorate the death in 1960 of the Mirabal sisters, who were killed by the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo in the Dominican Republic. This day was officially recognised by the United Nations in 1999, as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. The 16-day period also highlights other significant internationally recognised days, including 1 December, which is World Aids Day, and 6 December, which marks the anniversary of the Montreal massacre.
In South Africa, the campaign has brought together civil society, organisations, governments and businesses to raise awareness and to participate in events to raise funds to support victim’s support programmes. While the campaign is concentrated over a 16-day period, its effects last for 365 days.
There has been significant progress in elaborating and agreeing on international standards and norms. International and regional legal and policy instruments have clarified the obligation on states to prevent, eradicate and punish violence against women.
In conclusion, the combination of governments, businesses, civil society activities and interventions, the envisaged saturation of media coverage via advertising, public service announcements, interviews and editorial pronouncements, in conjunction with the extensive education campaign, will undoubtedly contribute to a heightened national awareness about the issues related to violence, and the importance of integrated solutions to the problem.
We encourage you to use this year to share the 16 days’ successes and struggles with one another and strategise collectively about ways to increase the effectiveness of the campaign, especially its human rights focus. Act against abuse, and wear your white ribbons throughout the campaign and make a difference! Thank you. [Applause.]
Ms S RAJBALLY: Chairperson, I come to this podium feeling very distraught. We have been coming to this podium to denounce violence against women and children. We have been working in our constituencies educating and uniting in the fight against violence directed at women and children, but where are we failing?
The news about the little seven-year-old Cape Town girl who was raped, stabbed and then set alight by a trusted family friend last Sunday angers me and makes me question the fabric of people we are breeding amongst us.
Thanks be to God that the girl is recovering in the hospital. However, she has sustained third-degree burns to 99% of her body. Our love and prayers are with the little girl and her family. May God ease her pain and may the vicious culprit be caught and convicted! What sane person does this to an innocent child? What sane person brings harm to any human being, and what excuse could be made for their evil?
The MF supports the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children. All spheres of government need to actively partake in reducing crime and violence in South Africa. Local government needs to realise the importance it plays in this regard. Our SAPS remains inadequate to assist in these situations and it is time the promised funding was utilised to train personnel and equip stations with the means to assist victims of violence.
As much as we have the strong arm of the South African law, it is still not a deterrent enough to stop crime. A harsher punishment must be considered to assist us in the fight against crime. Thank you. [Applause.]
Mr S J NJIKELANA: Sihlalo obekekileyo, manditsho ukuba siya kumanqwanqwa aphezulu ngoku. [Hon Chairperson, let me say that we are taking the campaign to higher levels.]
We are taking the campaign to higher levels.
Bandla elibekekileyo lamaPalamente, nani basindwendweleyo, sesiphinde safikelela kweli thuba lokuhlalutya iphulo lokuhlambulula eli lizwe silithandayo ukuze lihlambuluke kubuxelegu bokuphatha oomama nabantwana ngeendlela ezimanyukunyezi. Kutsha nje bendise Jiniva, apho i-Inter Parliamentary Union iye yabamba intlanganiso ebiphicotha inkqubela ye- Convention on the elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women kule nyanga idlulileyo, umhla we-19 kuOkthoba.
Kule ntlanganiso, ezona zinto ziphambili esiphume nazo zezi: Ingxelo malunga nemizamo yokusetyenziswa kwale ngqungquthela nesikhokelo sayo malunga nendlela yokuziphatha kwamazwe ngamazwe, okanye iprotocol; indima enokudlalwa ziipalamente, uluntu kunye namaphephandaba ekusetyenzisweni kwale ngqungquthela.
Kwakhona, kuye kwabuzwa ukuba yimithetho enjani efunekayo ukuze le nkomfa ibe iyasebenza. Yintoni enokwenziwa ziipalamente ukuqinisekisa ukuba amazwe ayayinika ingxelo ngezinto azenzayo malunga nale nkomfa. Zezo zinto ke ebesiziphicotha.
Kucace okwekati emhlophe ehlungwini ke, Sihlalo, ukuba amapalamente kwihlabathi lonke anxubile ngomba wobuxelegu bokuphathwa kakubi koomama nabantwana. Kodwa masingayibaleki nento yokuba siyathetha ngemilomo ngamanye amaxesha, kodwa nkqi ukwenza. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[Hon Members of Parliament and invited guests, we are here once again at this point talking about the evils of women and child abuse in this country. Recently I was in Geneva where the Inter-Parliamentary Union was held, discussing the progress of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. This was last month, on 19 October.
The main outcomes of this meeting were as follows: Reports about the efforts of using this Convention and its guidance, together with the protocol of various countries; and the role that Parliament and communities, as well as the media, could play in using this convention.
There was also a question on which laws were required in order for this Convention to work. What should parliaments do to ensure that countries give reports about what they do with this convention outcome? Those are the issues that we discussed.
Chairperson, it is clear that parliamentarians around the world are concerned about women and child abuse. We must not run away from the fact that we sometimes voice these issues and take no action.]
Chairperson, let me share my views on a case for a resocialisation strategy. It is high time that in our strategy for adding the campaign against violence on women and children, particularly taking it to higher levels, we need to enhance resocialisation for moral values within the family.
The family is one of the vital agents of socialisation and evidently resocialisation. Therefore, it is said to play a significant role in the reversal and even effective eradication of such abuse.
The social configuration of the South African society is still strongly anchored around the family institution. It therefore becomes equally important to utilise this institution to remedy some of our social ills. It is an undisputable fact that there are ideologies, philosophies and political systems that, through their omission or commission, allow evils such as violence against women and children not only to perpetuate but also to flourish. Particular focus is on capitalism together with its younger brother, neo-liberalism, as ideologies that are inherently violent structurally, institutionally and even within their basic values.
The very essence of expectation of labour power of the workers creates a culture and practice of imposition in many respects by those in possession of power upon those powerless. One might go further and assert that there is no religion of note that is worth its salt if it cannot claim, not just to have a stand against, but also to have values that stand diametrically opposed to abuse in general and violence against women and children in particular.
Intolerance and the rejection of peaceful coexistence become cornerstones for generations of violent behaviour. Capitalism has consistently served as a model for resolving disputes, conflicts, and differences in a violent manner instead of engaging in sincere dialogue that will result in peaceful settlement. This model is further generated at the workplace where the ill treatment of workers is a daily occurrence. What is unfortunate is that abusive men in turn reflect such models of ill treatment in their families, their casual relations and even when just generally relating to women.
At this stage the South African economy is still imbued with a social behaviour of resolving even mere differences in a violent manner whether emotional, psychological or physical.
The views of the ANC are nicely captured and confirmed by Comrade Cedric Mayson in the ANC periodical called Umrabulo of April 2002 when he said: People are not naturally violent. Humanity has survived and prospered because we are co-operative and supportive, but when we worship money or individual and group centeredness our feelings for others degenerate and brutality becomes quite reasonable whether it is focused on hitting children, raping women or mugging the weak - the fact remains they cease to be real people, because for them it is no crime, no problem, but just business as usual.
After 16 years of incessant campaigning against violence against women and children, we need to frankly assess the impact of such noble endeavours. In this Age of Hope whilst there is a good cause for rejoicing over such advances, we need to also be fairly vigilant.
Notwithstanding such an unfortunate environment, at times it is also inspiring to witness campaigns that are initiated by men calling upon other men to stop violence against women and their children. Whilst we may not be fully exposed to the impact of this in other campaigns, persistence and unflinching commitment are definitely bound to bring positive results in the end.
Let us also note that the campaign for nonviolence is a precious heritage of our revolution in South Africa, and therefore we need to safeguard it and even advance it. The growing, improving partnership between the state and civil society can be witnessed by the growing number of convictions, heightened by the confidence of victims of violence when it comes to reporting those incidents. It is just unfortunate that commercial media at times inject a lot of sentimentalism when reporting incidents of violence against women and children, obviously due to profit motives.
Well-researched and balanced newspaper articles, which are also educative at times, find themselves to be unfortunately still very few and far between. It is worth noting the contributions of both the SABC TV and radio stations on the campaign, although a lot of improvement is still possible.
Hon Chair, may I also caution exponents of the politics of pessimism. I want to make a passionate appeal to prophets of doom that whilst any single instance of violence is one too many, such is an experience of borrowed time, because the caring state of South Africa led by the ANC will ensure that this becomes history within no time.
We need to acknowledge the dire need of the imperative of certain fundamental changes in our society in order to effectively rid ourselves of this social leprosy. I am referring to transformation of gender relations whereby power relations of any form and character between men and women will definitely have to be equitable.
Investment in moral values guided by the philosophy of ubuntu is equally as important, if not more important at times, than consistent legislation as a means of changing social behaviour. It is on this basis that I call upon all parliamentarians not only to give support to the moral regeneration campaign, but also to place themselves amongst the champions that are driving the campaign. A change in the mindset of perpetrators as individuals who are integral to their families is more than vital. Every able individual in the family has a role to play in the eradication of violence against women and children.
At the launch of the Moral Regeneration Movement in the Eastern Cape in 2003, it was emphasised that every South African must be a moral regeneration agent, and furthermore all South Africans need to play their part in the promotion of national moral and values.
Kulapho ke, Mphathisihlalo, ndiqinisayo ukuthi ukubangaba singahlala ekhondweni kule ndlela, singakwazi ukuthomalalisa obu buxelegu bokuphatha kakubi oomama nabantwana. [Chairperson, this is where I believe that if we could follow this direction, we would be able to reduce the rate of women and child abuse.]
The ANC has relentlessly mobilised its cadres, members and South African society at large to rid itself of such social behaviours. However, let me conclude by reasserting that unless prerequisite fundamental changes take place in our society, our advances against such monstrosities are of limited success, and will haunt us for some time. Thank you. [Applause.]
Mr L M GREEN: Chairperson, allow me to thank the hon Waters for placing this item on the Order Paper. The Domestic Violence Act, amongst others, was passed by this Parliament, and the Act correctly identifies domestic violence as a serious social evil. Despite the good intentions of this Act, the remedies currently available to victims of domestic violence are ineffective.
I suspect that a great many police officers do not either understand or take seriously the Domestic Violence Act. At many police stations police officers cannot cope with the caseload. As a result only serious criminal cases such as murder and armed robbery are given top priority.
When a choice has to be made as to which investigations should be prioritised, the Domestic Violence Act cases are dropped. The statistics raised by the hon Waters should be seriously considered by our government, because they do have an impact in crime prevention. Physical, sexual, emotional, verbal and psychological abuse against women and children must be stopped, and we must do everything in our power to stop it. I thank you. [Applause.]
Nksz P TSHWETE: Sihlalo, Sekela-Mphathiswa Nomatyala Hangana, Malungu ahloniphekileyo ePalamente, ndibulela ukuba ndibe namhlanje ndiza kukhe ndixhamle kwesi sihloko seeNtsuku ezili-16 zemiGushuzo. Kwakhona ndibulela i-ANC ngokuthi isenzele uMgaqo-siseko okhusela amalungelo amakhosikazi.
Kwakhona mandibulele iOfisi kaMongameli ngokuhlonipha amalungelo abantwana namakhosikazi. Mandingabalibali oomama abathabatha inxaxheba kumngcelele woqhankqalazo owathi weza neenguqu. Abanye babo bayaphila, ngoko kungcono ukuba sithethe ngabo ngoku besaphila, singalindeli ukwenza njalo bengekho, sele babhubha. Ndithetha ngooMam’ Ndzanga, ooMe Lesea, ooMam’ uIvy Gcina. Siyabulela boomama kuba namhlanje siyakwazi ukuba sivule imilomo sithethe. [Kwaqhwatywa.]
Ndiza kucela uxolo kuwe Sekela-Mphathiswa Hangana. Ndicela ukungena kwizihlangu zikaMphathiswa wezoKhuselo noKhuseleko. Nangona zizikhulu kum, kodwa ndiza kuzinxiba. Ndiyacela ukuba ndikhe ndikhumbuze ilungu elihloniphekileyo uWaters ngokuba kutheni ze kuthethwe ngeCandelo elijongene noDushe phakathi koSapho, uKhuselo lwaBantwana noLwaphulo- mthetho ngokweSondo, i-Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit ngesilungu, okanye i-FCS ngamafutshane.
Mhlawumbi mandiqale phambi konyaka we-1994 ukwenzela ukuba aze kuyazi kakuhle le nto. Ndicela ukuba umamele kakuhle ngoba ziingcebiso ezi ndiza kukunika zona. Oomama bethu babesebenza emakhitshini, bephangela ngentseni bekhulisa ooWaters aba. Bengaka nje ooWaters bakhuliswe ngoomama noomakhulu bethu.
I-ANC ingenelele kweso sithuba yathi makhe sibakhusele oomama ngoba kudala becinezelwe kwaye bayivile intlungu. Waters, kaloku naphaya kokwenu xa ufika uza kufika uziselwe ukutya ngumntu omnyama, isuka apho le nto.
Mhlawumbi kule mihla anisakwazi ukuyenza loo nto, kodwa ngexa umakhulu wam wayesebenza ekhitshini ndandichwechwa xa kufuneka ndingene ekhitshini ukuze umlungu ongumninimzi angandiboni. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[Ms P TSHWETE: Chairperson, Deputy Minister Nomatyala Hangana, hon members, it is a pleasure to participate in today’s topic of the 16 Days of Activism. I am also grateful to the ANC for having produced such a progressive Constitution in which women’s rights are enshrined.
I would also like to express my appreciation of the Office of the Presidency for the respect it displays for children’s and women’s rights. I could not forget the women who participated in the marches that brought about changes. Some of them are still among us and it would be the right thing to honour them while they are still alive. Among them are Mrs Ndzanga, Mrs Lesea and Mrs Ivy Gcina. We are thankful to you mothers; today we are able to express our views openly because of your efforts. [Applause.]
I would like Deputy Minister Hangana to excuse me a little. I want to say something with regard to the Minister of Safety and Security. It is not my place to say anything regarding that; however, I am going to say it anyway. I want to remind hon Waters about the reasons that led to the discussion about the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit, the FCS in short.
Perhaps things would be clearer for him if I took him back to the period before 1994. I am asking you to pay attention, as I am about to give sound advice. Our mothers were employed as domestic workers and used to wake up in the early hours of the morning in order to take care of people such as hon Waters. They have grown this old now under our mothers’ and grandmothers’ care.
The ANC realised the need to protect their rights and intervened on their behalf because these are the people who have, for a long time, been suppressed. Hon Waters, you should not forget that when you get home, it is a black person who is going to prepare and bring you food.
Nowadays that may not be happening, but when my grandmother was employed as a domestic worker, I had to literally tiptoe into the white man’s kitchen to avoid being seen by the owner or owners of the house.]
I want to remind you that before 1994 my grandmother worked as a domestic worker. I couldn’t get into the kitchen of the house where she worked because I was afraid of the white owner. [Interjections.]
Moulana M R SAYEDALI-SHAH: Deal with the matter at hand!
Ms P TSHWETE: Wait! Wait!
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms C-S Botha): Order, please!
Nksz P TSHWETE: Emgodini … ndiyeza kuwe Waters, ndiza kukungcambazisa namhlanje. Uze kuma apha udlisela ngokuba ukhokela inkqubo yethu yokulwa ubundlobongela obujoliswe kumakhosikazi, eze noomama bethu abasilwelayo ukuze kube kho iinguqu eMzantsi Afrika. Namhlanje uyazigwagwisa, usixelela ukuba … nkqu into yokuba ubulelwe nguGreen ngokuba uthathe inxaxheba yokuba ukhokele inkqubo yokulwa ubundlobongela obujoliswe kumakhosikazi.
Xa uqulunqa inkqubo uyafana nomntu ohlafuna amathambo, amane ekuhlaba. Uyabundukunya, ulungisa uMgaqo-siseko ukuze amakhosikazi, nalawo asezifama, axhamle. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[Ms P TSHWETE: I am coming to you, hon Waters. I want to clear things up with you. Where do you get the audacity to boast about leading a programme that fights violence against women that was fought for and initiated by our mothers who were part of the people who brought about changes in South Africa? You are boastful today. I cannot even understand how hon Green can thank you for this programme.
Starting a new programme is an effort. One struggles to draw up a constitution that recognises women’s rights including those who work on the farms.]
An HON MEMBER: Deal with the units!
Nksz P TSHWETE: Ingxaki yakho … ndiyeza kuzo, ungandingxameli. Ingxaki yakho kukuba uthatha le nkqubo sele yenziwe yi-ANC okanye inkqubo esele siyihlafune yathamba, ukuze wena uthathe ngokuginya. Awuzi kuginya into ehlafunwe sithi, awucingi.
Ndigqithe ke apho. Kwakhona ndicela ukucacisa ukuba thina siyi-ANC siyalixhasa ilinge nenguqu eyenziwa liSebe lezoKhuselo noKhuseleko lokusondeza ii-FCS eluntwini. Into abayoyikayo kukuba ezi FCS zisuswa phaya koosinxibamxhaka edolophini ziziswa emakhaya.
Abalufuni uhlengahlengiso. Lungu elihloniphekileyo Waters, andikwazi ukukuyeka uthethe into engekhoyo ngoba abantu baza kumka nalaa nto uyithethileyo ingekhoyo. UMphathiswa wezoKhuselo noKhuseleko ulungiselela aba mama babethwayo ezilokishini bangenazo izithuthi zokubheka edolophini, kwiindawo ezifana ne-Bellville, baye kuchaza ezo zenzo. Kwenzelwa nalaa mama uhluphekileyo ungenayo nemali yokuqabela iteksi aye edolophini ukuze kube lula kuye ukuhamba ngeenyawo aye kuchaza isenzo sokubethwa kwakhe kufutshane, kungathiwa: Hamba ubheke eBellville kuba icandelo elijongene nezo ziganeko alikho apha.
Ndicela nje ukucacisa ukuba le nto ebethetha ngayo uWaters kukusondezwa kwee-FCS eKhayelitsha, ePeelton nasezilalini. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[Ms P TSHWETE: I am going to address the problems you seem to have; please do not rush me. You want to lay a claim to a programme that was initiated by the ANC. That, you will not succeed in doing. Never!
Furthermore, the ANC supports and commends the Department of Safety and Security for establishing FCS units and bringing them closer to the people. Some are concerned because the service is being taken away from the affluent areas and brought near the communities it matters most to.
They do not want any kind of restructuring. Hon Waters, I cannot avoid stopping you from misleading people. The Minister of Safety and Security is doing this to help the women who face abuse every day in the townships and who may not have transportation to the city or areas such as Bellville where they could report cases. This is done to help the poor woman who does not have taxi fare, so that she is able to walk to the office at which such cases are reported. They should not be told to go to Bellville to report a matter such as that one because there isn’t one in their area.
I want to explain that what hon Waters was talking about was the bringing of FCS’s close to Khayelitsha, Peelton and the rural areas.]
The opposition party or the DA continues to create the impression that specialised units have been dismantled.
Ayikho loo nto; sanukuphosisa apha. [Nothing like that exists; please do not lie.]
These units were brought to micro areas, where the police personnel with relevant skills would be better placed to deal directly with the cases of violence against women and children. Every perpetrator must pay for the crime that he or she committed. We all say so as the ANC.
Nina anina kusixelela ngobundlobongela. Sasingcungcutheka sibethwa, noomama bethu bebethwa xa bendwendwela abayeni babo emigodini, kubuzwe ukuba baze kufuna ntoni emigodini ngala mapolisa athetha ngawo namhlanje. Namhlanje afanelekile. Ulibele ukuba thina senza iinguqu kula mapolisa, siyawamkela ukuze abe ngawethu. Musan’ ukusikhumbuza ukuba sicaphukele amapolisa ngenxa yezinto awayezenza, ebetha amakhosikazi xa endwendwele abayeni bawo emigodini. Bubundlobongela obujoliswe kumakhosikazi obo. Bubo ke obu sithetha ngabo. Bubo obu bubangele ukuba siqulunqe uMgaqo-siseko. [Kwaqhwatywa.] (Translation of isiXhosa paragraph follows.)
[You are the last people to tell us about violence. We suffered abuse previously and our mothers were beaten when they visited their husbands in the mines, where they would be asked what they were looking for there by the same police he mentioned here today. He seems to have completely forgotten that we brought about changes even to the police service. We have welcomed them as part of us. Please do not remind us of things that would drive us to hate police for the things they did to us in the past, such as beating women when they had gone to visit their husbands on the mines. That is violence against women. That is what we are talking about. That is one of the things that led to the drafting of the Constitution.]
Measures have been put in place to protect the rights of women and children.
Nixhaph’ amagwebu nithetha ngeSebe lezoKhuselo noKhuseleko, aniyiphathi le nto iyingxaki. Bendicinga mna ukuba uWaters efuna ukuhlahla indlela kule ngxoxo-mpikiswano nje, uza kuchaza ngenguqu eyenzekileyo; akaboni kwa nguqu eyenzekileyo.
UWaters ufumene iqonga lokunika ingxelo yophando abalwenze kwizikhululo zamapolisa. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[You are foaming at the mouth talking about the Department of Safety and Security, but avoiding what really matters. I was under the impression that hon Waters was going to give a report about the changes that have happened. It would seem that, according to him, no change has happened at all.
Hon Waters is using this platform to give a report about some police stations.]
What is that?
Usixelela ukuba uze kuthetha ngeeNtsuku ezili-16 zemiGushuzo yokulwa ukuxhatshazwa kwamakhosikazi, kodwa uze kunika ingxelo yophando alwenzileyo. Asifuni loo nto thina namhlanje. Sifuna ukuthetha ngenkqubela- phambili eyenziwe ngurhulumente wethu kwaneenkqubo aseza kuzenzela abantu bethu abangoomama. [Kwaqhwatywa.] (Translation of isiXhosa paragraph follows.)
[He says he came here to talk about the 16 Days of Activism whilst he knows that all he wants to do is to report on the investigation he has done. We are not interested in that. We want to talk about the progress made by our government and the programmes that are going to be established later to assist women. [Applause.]]
We still need to address the questions of HIV and Aids, unemployment and poverty, which is most prevalent in rural areas.
Siyakubona, Sekela-Mphathiswa, ukuba uyaya ezifama kwaye uyawushukuxa lo mba. Amanye amakhosikazi athe aneSifo uGawulayo asifumene kuba ebengaphangeli, engena kuthi hayi kutata esiza nayo endlwini, kuba exhomekeke kuye. Nokuba akazi kuyinxiba ikhondom utata, inkosikazi iya kunyamezela kuba kaloku yondliwa nguye. Nazo izinto ekufuneka kuthethwe ngazo namhlanje, ungabe usixelela ngophando lwamapolisa apha. Lukhathalelwe ngubani?
Imnandi le nto uyithethayo. Ndiyithand’ ukufa. Indifak’ iparafini.
Ukubangaba apha eMzantsi Afrika siza kuthi sizigqumelele izinto esasizenziwe, kuba sisithi sizama uxolo, olo xolo alwenzeki kwi-DA nangona siluzama, silubundukunya. Bayasixhokonxa benza yonk’ into. Ngokuhlahl’ indlela kule ngxoxo-mpikiswano, mna bendicinga ukuba baza kuthi: “Makhosikazi, nazi iinkqubo”, kanti bathetha ukuba baza kuginya iinkqubo zethu esizenzileyo, bengakhange bahlafune. Ayizi kwenzeka loo nto. Xa ndigqibezela, mandimbulele kwakhona uSekela-Mphathiswa uHangana ngokuya phaya ezifama. Sisenenxaxheba emasiyidlale ke boomama. Makhe silibale ngophando lwamapolisa.
Sisenoxanduva, thina bantu abalapha ePalamente, lokuya phaya ezilalini, kwiinqila zethu zovoto, siye kukhulula aba mama bangeka khululeki. Ezi zinto sizenzayo apha ezidolophini, kufuneka siye kuzenza nasezilalini. Ngoko thina singoomama abakwaziyo ukuya kufikelela ezilalini ngezithuthi zethu kufuneka sibasele ezi nkqubo. Abanye boomama ezilalini basathi bangqutywe licango ngexa bebethwe ngabayeni babo. Ngoko kufuneka sibavule imilomo ukuze umntu kusasa akwazi ukuya kuchaza ukuba ubethwe ngumyeni wakhe.
Okokugqibela, makhosikazi, kufuneka singayilibali into yokuba amakhosikazi asela utywala ade aba ngamakhoboka abo awayanga etywaleni kuba ebufuna, koko ngenxa yokuxhatshazwa ngabayeni.
Ukuba ungaba nomyeni onguWaters ungalala usele mihla le, ngoba kaloku akanaxolo. Sidinga ukuba sikhulule abaa mama bangeka khululeki, bangawaziyo amalungelo abo. Ndiyacela ke ukuba xa eza kukhwela eqongeni uWaters, ze singammameli ngoba uza nengxelo yophando.
Endaweni yokuba asikhokele, uWaters usuke waza kuvakalisa inqala lakhe ngokubhekisele kwiSebe lezoKhuselo noKhuseleko, ngoko andinakumyeka agqithe, boomama. Enkosi kakhulu. [Kwaqhwatywa.] (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[Hon Deputy Minister, we know that you do pay visits to women on the farms and this matter is one of your priorities. Some women have contracted Aids because they are unemployed and dependent on their husbands and therefore find it hard to refuse their husbands their conjugal rights. The woman would find it difficult to force the man to wear a condom because of this dependency. Those are the things we should be talking about today, not some report on the police. Who cares about that?
I like what you just said. I like it very much. It gives me energy.
We will not be paying due respect to our struggle if we let them get away without taking responsibility for the bad things they did to us because we say we want peace. The DA does not want peace no matter how much we strive for it. I thought that they were going to say they have certain programmes through which women can be empowered, but instead they boast about programmes that we initiated. That will not happen.
In conclusion, I would like to thank Deputy Minister Hangana for paying a visit to farmworkers. Women still have a big role to play in their lives. Let us not only depend on police statistics.
Members of Parliament have a responsibility to liberate women in their rural constituencies. What we do in towns and cities, we should also do in rural areas. Those of us who can go to rural areas, should educate them about these programmes. Some women in rural areas would say that they bumped against a door when in fact they had been beaten by their husbands. We must empower them in such a way that they do not find it difficult to go out and report their husbands when they beat them.
Finally, we should remember that some women resort to alcohol because of violence and abuse at home.
If you had hon Waters as your husband, you would definitely go to bed intoxicated every night because he does not have peace. We need to free those women who are not aware of their rights yet. When he comes to present a report from this podium, I appeal to you all that we do not listen to him, because he will be presenting an investigation report.
Instead of providing leadership in this matter, hon Waters has come to express his hatred for the Department of Safety and Security. I could not let him get away with that, hon women. Thank you. [Applause.]]
Mr M WATERS: Chair, it’s typical of the ANC to reduce a debate of this nature to the lowest common denominator by fawning a speaker like hon Tshwete … [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms C-S Botha): Order, please! Order!
Mr M WATERS: Chair, I just want to thank all speakers who participated so constructively in this debate, and if I don’t refer to them in my four minutes, they should please excuse me.
The Deputy Minister started off by asking if I took the media along on my tour of Gauteng. No, I didn’t, Deputy Minister.
An HON MEMBER: Why not?
Mr M WATERS: Why should I? I’m going to offer to take you, Deputy Minister, to all 36 cluster stations, in my car without the media, so that you can see that what I’ve said is the facts and that I didn’t make anything up. You can come back to Parliament and report, if you like. Do you take me up on that challenge?
Now you’re silent. It’s the first time you’ve been silent for a long time. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms C-S Botha): Order, please!
Mr M WATERS: One of our duties as MPs – all of us, irrespective of the parties we belong to – is that we have to play an oversight role in respect of government agencies. It doesn’t matter where we are from or what we are interested in.
My going to police stations was just as a result of my concern about child abuse in this country. I’ve highlighted what has happened since the migration of FCS offices to cluster stations - those services to women and children have been negatively affected.
In fact, the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Correctional Services said last week that we should go “see for ourselves”. The Minister of Correctional Services even offered us his access card to the prisons to go and have a look. I think that the ANC should welcome the fact that opposition MPs are going to see and report back to Parliament, but obviously they don’t.
And it’s a great pity that the ANC gives such impetus and importance to violence against women that there’s no Minister of Safety and Security, no Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, no Deputy Minister of Safety and Security and no Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development here either. Where are they?
I would like to respond to the hon Tshwete, if I can. She goes on about pre- 1994 domestic workers and miners. The venom with which she talks about the past, it’s amazing that she can still sit in a party that has welcomed the party of apartheid, the NP, into its ranks - lock, stock and barrel.
Let me tell you: You took them in, you chewed them and you swallowed them – something we couldn’t do; so good luck to you. And just remember to ask them at your next caucus meeting … [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms C-S Botha): Order, please!
Mr M WATERS: … why they brought in the pass laws, the Separate Amenities Act. Yes, that’s all you can do. You’ve made your bed, now you must sleep in it.
The fact of the matter is that it was said that we are against the fact that FCS units … [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms C-S Botha): Order, please, hon members! Please! Please give the hon Waters the opportunity to respond, please. Hon Waters, take your seat.
Ms A VAN WYK: Will the hon member take a question?
Mr M WATERS: If I have time, certainly. But I just want to finish here, please Annelizé. Thank you. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms C-S Botha): Hon members, please! Please! Mr M WATERS: May I continue, Chair?
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms C-S Botha): Please continue.
Mr M WATERS: The DA is not against the transformation of the FCS offices. The fact is, previously in Gauteng every woman and child had access to an FCS police officer, who could investigate their case. Today this is not the case. Eleven cluster stations, which represent over 22 000 FCS cases, are not being investigated by specialised police officer. You cannot tell me that is the promotion and protection of the rights of women and children; you cannot. It’s retrogressive and you’ve got to accept that.
What I’m hoping for, Deputy Minister, since you are that passionate about it and you are now leading the charge of 16 Days of Activism, is that I’ll give you a copy of my report and that you and I will go to Gauteng and see for ourselves. Maybe together we can put something right for those men and women, because they are frustrated by not having offices, telephone lines and vehicles in order to do their jobs. But I thank the rest of you for participating in the debate. Thank you very much. [Applause.]
Debate concluded.
UNPARLIAMENTARY LANGUAGE
(Ruling)
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms C-S Botha): Order, please! Before the secretary reads the second and third Orders of the Day, and after the conclusion of this debate, I would like to make a ruling on a Point of Order raised in the House on 21 September 2006.
On 21 September, during Members’ Statements, the hon Gibson raised a Point of Order in regard to a statement made by the hon Gaum relating to the conduct of the hon Coetzee towards a staff member. The hon Gibson contended that the hon Gaum was presenting allegations made against the hon Coetzee as though they were facts, this despite the fact that hon Coetzee had denied these allegations.
I undertook to study the Hansard and return to the House with a considered ruling. Having now had the opportunity to study the Hansard, I rule as follows.
Any complaint of improper conduct of hon members against staff members is a serious matter and would need to be formally drawn to the attention of either the Secretary to Parliament or the Speaker, but cannot be offered in this House without substantiation, as the hon Gaum had done.
Furthermore, it is regrettable that the hon Gaum, in his remarks, also referred to the staff member by name. I gather from the hon Gibson’s Point of Order that a formal complaint has been lodged. In any event, as hon members know, it is established practice that a member that wishes to bring any allegations of improper conduct on the part of another hon member to the attention of the House should do so by way of a substantive motion, comprising a clearly formulated and properly substantiated charge.
Except upon such a substantive motion, hon members are not permitted to impute improper motives to other hon members or cast personal reflections on their integrity, or verbally abuse them in any other way. Prefixing the statement with the words: “It is alleged”, as the hon Gaum did, does not make it any more acceptable.
The remarks by the hon Gaum are, therefore, out of order, and I must ask him to withdraw all the offensive imputations against the hon Coetzee.
Adv A H GAUM: I withdraw, Chairperson.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms C-S Botha): Thank you. [Applause.]
CONSIDERATION OF REPORT OF PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON JUSTICE AND
CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT - PROVISIONAL SUSPENSION FROM OFFICE OF
MAGISTRATE Mr I X MASIMINI
Order disposed of without debate.
Question put: That the recommendation of the committee be adopted and the provisional suspension of Mr I X Masimini not be confirmed.
Agreed to.
Recommendation of the committee adopted, and provisional suspension of Magistrate Mr I X Masimini accordingly not confirmed by the House.
CONSIDERATION OF REPORT OF PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON JUSTICE AND
CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT - PROVISIONAL SUSPENSION FROM OFFICE OF
MAGISTRATE MR M MATEREKE
Order disposed of without debate.
Question put: That the recommendation of the committee be adopted and the provisional suspension of Mr M Matereke be confirmed.
Agreed to.
Recommendation of the committee adopted, and provisional suspension of Magistrate Mr M Matereke accordingly confirmed by the House.
CONSIDERATION OF SEVENTY-SIXTH REPORT OF STANDING COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC
ACCOUNTS – APPROVAL AND ALLOCATION OF HOUSING SUBSIDIES AT PROVINCIAL
HOUSING DEPARTMENTS
CONSIDERATION OF SEVENTY-SEVENTH REPORT OF STANDING COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC ACCOUNTS - SOUTH AFRICAN WEATHER SERVICES
CONSIDERATION OF SEVENTY-EIGHTH REPORT OF STANDING COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC ACCOUNTS - COMPENSATION COMMISSIONER FOR OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH DISEASES
CONSIDERATION OF SEVENTY-NINTH REPORT OF STANDING COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC
ACCOUNTS - DEPARTMENT OF LABOUR
CONSIDERATION OF EIGHTIETH REPORT OF STANDING COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC
ACCOUNTS - COMPENSATION FUND
CONSIDERATION OF EIGHTY-FIRST REPORT OF STANDING COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC
ACCOUNTS - INDEPENDENT ELECTORAL COMMISSION
CONSIDERATION OF EIGHTY-SECOND REPORT OF STANDING COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC
ACCOUNTS - HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION OF SOUTH AFRICA
CONSIDERATION OF EIGHTY-THIRD REPORT OF STANDING COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC
ACCOUNTS - LEGAL AID BOARD
CONSIDERATION OF EIGHTY-FOURTH REPORT OF STANDING COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC
ACCOUNTS - PUBLIC PROTECTOR OF SOUTH AFRICA
Mr N T GODI: Chairperson, comrades and hon members, on behalf of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, let me thank the programming Whip for accommodating our request at such short notice. We want to assure you that, going forward, we will co-ordinate such matters better than in this particular instance.
The debate on Scopa resolutions before the House was introduced last year, and this was rediscussed and re-emphasised in our Scopa meeting last week. The perspective of the entire membership of Scopa is that debating these reports is not supposed to be about point-scoring or politics, it is about dealing with pertinent issues of national importance. It is about rallying together and mobilising everyone in the fight against mismanagement, maladministration and waste of public resources. It is about bringing to the fore the important work that Scopa is doing. It is about sensitising the public about the need for what the late Vietnamese revolutionary, uncle Ho Chi Minh, called “revolutionary morality in public service.” It is about laying bear the indisputable connection between quality and timeless service delivery, and sound financial management and administration.
We’ve called for the developmental state as a matter of ideological conviction, but also as a practical necessity and response to socioeconomic conditions imposed on us by historical circumstances. The expanded role of the state in the socioeconomic sphere cannot be fulfilled in a state of inefficiency, incapacity and a total disregard for laws, regulations, policies and procedures - thus the call from Scopa for a heightened sense of vigilance and intolerance against corruption and mediocrity.
We are bringing before this House reports that can be put into two categories. The first one is about reports that are clean, whose audit opinions are unqualified, and against whom we have no issues to raise except to praise and thank them for sticking to the spirit and the letter of the Public Finance Management Act.
They are shining examples that things can be done correctly and that it is not impossible to do the right things. They are the lights that must be put on top of the mountain to shine for everybody. Failing departments and public entities can take the cue from them. We are referring here to the 81st report on the Independent Electoral Commission, the 82nd report on the Human Rights Commission of South Africa, the 83rd report on the Legal Aid Board and the 84th report on the Public Protector of South Africa. We hope as Scopa that their future audit opinions will remain clean.
The second category is of those reports that had serious issues that warranted us to call the participants for hearings. As has been noted on each of these reports, there are serious issues of concern that relate to poor administration of resources and disregard for laws and regulations.
The 76th report, which was a performance audit by the Auditor- General, entitled “Report of the Auditor-General on the findings identified during a performance audit of the approval and allocation of housing subsidies at provincial housing departments.” We must state that, in this particular hearing, the provincial housing departments were called together with the national Department of Housing. The reason was that, whilst the money used for building houses is voted in this National Assembly, it is dispersed to the provinces as conditional grants. So we felt that in order to complete the accountability spectrum, the provinces should also come.
Going forward, there will be no hesitation to call provinces to come with national departments to account before Scopa for monies voted by this House. Let us also indicate that the provincial Scopas participated in this groundbreaking and mammoth hearing.
There were serious weaknesses and corrupt practices that were fingered in this report. To mitigate or to actually eliminate these, Scopa recommends, amongst others, that a comprehensive strategy of co-operation and integration between the national and provincial departments be instituted; that Parliament be reported to on disciplinary matters taken against any officials and that progress reports be given on the status of implementation of instructions from the Minister.
The same goes for other reports, namely the 77th report on the S A Weather Service, the 78th report on the Compensation Commission for Occupational Health Diseases, the 79th report on the Department of Labour, and the 80th report on the Compensation Fund. In all of these reports mentioned above, we‘ve made demanding observations and passed tough recommendations to correct the problems as we have seen them.
Lastly, we would like to express our appreciation for the time allocated for us to debate these reports in the House. We believe that the adoption of these reports by the House will go a long way in strengthening Scopa’s tough hand as a defender of the public purse. We equally believe that that will, in part, enhance Parliament’s oversight responsibilities over the executive.
We also want to thank Scopa members for their hard work, close scrutiny of issues and the never-say-die attitude. The sense of purpose and focus in the committee is both commendable and refreshing. With a united and focused Scopa, there will be no hiding place for those who do not comply with laws we pass in this House or National Treasury regulations. We commend these reports to the House. I thank you. [Applause.]
Dr E NKEM-ABONTA: Chairperson, Ministers … there are no Ministers – I salute you nonetheless. I also salute you, hon members of this august House. I salute you because you represent the sovereign people of our country and you have sworn to defend their rights, as enshrined in our Constitution.
As you are well aware, our Constitution guarantees certain socioeconomic rights to citizens, and key among them is the right to decent housing. But this right, without intervention of government, will remain elusive for millions of our people who lack personal resources to adequately provide for themselves.
If history has taught us anything, it is that solidarity is essential for peace and social cohesion. Indeed, most South Africans, irrespective of their political persuasion, are agreed on one thing. They agree that those of us who are fortunate will, despite the pain, contribute their resources in proportion to their individual resource capacity to lessen the misery, if not brighten the future, of less fortunate compatriots.
Such resources, offered in pain and sacrifice to government as public money, are without a doubt sacred. They are sacred because they signal our individual commitment to nation-building. They express our God-given duty to be our brother’s keeper. They, more than anything else, announce loud and clear that we as a people, mindful of our history and culture, uphold ubuntu as our most cherished and sacred societal value.
Public money may not, therefore, be mismanaged. Nor may it be given to those who do not qualify to receive it. And under no circumstances should persons whose job it is to spend it wisely - that is, for the intended purpose and objectives - steal it or allow it to be stolen. Public money meant to provide housing for those who cannot provide it for themselves must serve no other purpose. It must provide maximum housing for the very needy among us.
An HON MEMBER: Hear! Hear!
Dr E NKEM-ABONTA: Am I dwelling on the obvious as I speak? I think so. And I know that many of my fellow hon members might even think me trite in my speech – I plead their indulgence. [Interjections.] I plead their indulgence, because often the most basic principles are also the most important. Such principles need to be emphasised, restated and highlighted at every opportunity until at last they seem trite, even usé.
As I speak, I am sad. I am sad because disturbing signs have emerged. They indicate that all is not well with the housing function in our national and provincial spheres of government. They suggest that public money meant to provide housing for the poor and vulnerable among us might be under questionable husbandry … [Interjections.] … this, despite the tireless efforts of the Minister of Housing and the wise stewardship of our able Minister of Finance. Indeed, a reading of the report of the Auditor-General on the findings of a performance audit of the approval and allocation of housing subsidies of provincial departments of housing will bear me out. The Standing Committee on Public Accounts, Scopa, alive to its responsibility, held a public hearing on the Auditor-General’s report with the nine provincial Scopas in attendance. At that public hearing Scopa heard and considered evidence put before it, which evidence it believes corroborates the Auditor-General’s report.
The evidence given at that hearing, to say the least, painted a sad and dismal picture of the state of affairs at our provincial departments of housing. A few examples will suffice to bring the point home. Firstly, almost any employee, no matter how junior, could manually override data captured from applications for housing subsidies.
Secondly, many ID numbers captured on the system were either invalid, incompatible with the 13-digit Republic of South Africa ID numbers or simply reflected data significantly at variance with ID data at the Department of Home Affairs.
Thirdly, in too many instances subsidies were approved for under-aged persons in clear contravention of the law, and nonqualified public servants also got subsidies – even many dead persons somehow managed to receive subsidies.
Fourthly, many subsidies simply did not have supporting documentation, because departments did not have credible filing and archiving systems.
Fifthly, co-ordination between the national Department of Housing and the provincial departments was at best weak.
Sixthly, instructions issued by the Minister of Housing aimed at improving the administration of subsidy allocation were disregarded.
Scopa, of course appalled by these findings and the zero prospects for a significantly improved state of affairs, recommends to this House that: Firstly, the practice of separation of duties be complied with and that only duly authorised senior managers be allowed to effect overrides to subsidy applications; secondly, the department establish an ID verification mechanism linked to data on the Department of Home Affairs database; thirdly, the department must ensure that policy guidelines with respect to the administration and awarding of subsidies are enforced; fourthly, the department must report to Parliament on disciplinary actions taken against employees who engaged in fraudulent and corrupt activities; fifthly, the department institute a comprehensive strategy of co-operation and integration with provincial departments; sixthly, the department submit a progress report to Parliament on the status of the implementation of the instructions issued by the Minister; and seventhly, Scopa and the Portfolio Committee on Housing be briefed on corrective measures taken on all the above recommendations by the end of November 2006.
We in Scopa believe that we have acted with requisite speed and a sense of urgency. We also believe that we have duly applied our minds to the evidence put before us and that we have been circumspect in the recommendations that we make here today.
Consequently, I urge you men and women of honour, in the name and interest of the sovereign people that we here represent, and for whom many live their lives, to adopt these recommendations. I further urge you to demand, even with your last breath, the highest standards of probity, moral rectitude and competence from our public servants, the personal risk to you notwithstanding.
Let us not forget that our Constitution sets …
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms S-C Botha): Order! Hon member, I regret your time has expired.
Dr E NKEM-ABONTA: I leave you, nonetheless, with these words of advice.
An HON MEMBER: No, you can’t!
Dr E NKEM-ABONTA: He who wants to build very high, must dig very deep. I thank you.
Mr E W TRENT: Chairperson, today we debate reports on a number of public entities and key government departments based on the audit outcomes of the 2004-05 financial year, and there’s not a single Minister to listen to these reports.
Many of the annual reports for the 2005-06 financial year have already been tabled. This means that Scopa has virtually been toothless in helping to effect any year-on-year improvement by the relevant public entities. We’re already in the next cycle. [Interjections.]
The proper functioning of the public entities and key departments being discussed here today is crucial to service delivery, poverty alleviation and protecting the vulnerable. Scopa is also a key tool in Parliament’s oversight arsenal.
If we, as MPs, are serious about consolidating Parliament as a power to be reckoned with - separate but equal to the executive - then the parties represented in this Parliament, through common co-operative effort, need to ensure that Scopa can complete its oversight work in time to be effective. [Interjections.]
To illustrate the importance of this point, I focused on one of these departments, the Department of Labour. The Department of Labour is our department of employment, our skills revolution department, our productivity and labour relations department, and supposedly a key driver of economic growth in South Africa - I say that with my tongue in my cheek – yet year after year we have to read the AG’s report detailing massive financial mismanagement.
In its 79th report - remember, this report we’re dealing with today is last year’s report, not the current one – Scopa, amongst other things, finds the following: Proper reconciliations were never done between the personnel salary payment system and the basic accounting system, making the accuracy of the reported information unverifiable, and should therefore be considered having been open to abuse.
Various instances of noncompliance with the Public Finance Management Act and Treasury regulations are also mentioned. The departmental asset register was left split and incomplete, and should therefore be considered having been open to abuse.
Finally, amongst others, the performance bonuses awarded, which is 5,06% of total personal expenditure, was more than three times higher than the allowed 1,5%, as directed by the Department of Public Service and Administration. Now that’s for people who have administered a department with that audit record! In order to deal with these instances of mismanagement, Scopa has tabled a number of resolutions for the consideration of the House. This means that these resolutions, if supported, become effective today.
Let us now look at the Auditor-General’s report on the current audit, the one we haven’t dealt with yet, and the latest one. In addition to a number of new problems, we find once again, proper reconciliations between the personnel salary payment system and the basic accounting system were still not being done. Secondly, again, certain provisions of the PFMA and Treasury regulations were still not met.
Thirdly, proper asset management was still plagued by incomplete asset registers. And then, finally, the very people who got bonuses for last year’s report – this is what the Auditor-General’s got to say about them – received performance bonuses of R12,1 million, which, at 2,85% still remains at almost double the level prescribed in the relevant DPSA directive. [Interjections.]
Exactly the same problems persist! These are the departments – and there are many of them – that are now commonly known as serial offenders. If there had been proper intervention, it is probable that we might not have had to deal with these problems yet again. Is it not time now that the executive committee be called to account for their actions? [Interjections.] I conclude using an example of an instance in which Scopa has managed to move with greater speed, and I would like to mention from its 76th report that of the Auditor-General’s findings on the housing subsidies, as mentioned by some of my colleagues. This is a ground-breaking exercise in which all the provincial departments came together with us collectively and the hearing, I believe, was very fruitful.
In this regard Scopa has resolved that the Minister should brief the Portfolio Committee on Housing and Scopa on how the situation can be improved by the end of November. It is my sincere hope that the Minister has all the necessary answers ready before Parliament goes into recess on 15 December. Unless she does so she will surely be in contempt of Parliament.
Mr H J BEKKER: Madam Chair, the nine Scopa reports before the House today indicate varying degrees of compliance and noncompliance with the Public Finance Management Act and National Treasury regulations by the relevant institutions.
In respect of the SA Weather Service it is clear that the Auditor-General uncovered massive management inefficiencies and deficiencies, leading the committee to term management at the weather service a “failure”. This stinging rebuke should, one hopes, motivate management to drastically improve their performance. Scopa will of course keep a close watch on improvements in this regard, and we await the report called for in the committee’s recommendations. Unfortunately, it seems to me that lightning has apparently struck the weather service.
Noncompliance with the PFMA and Treasury regulations caused fruitless expenditure of more than R45 million at the Compensation Commissioner. The Auditor-General has also highlighted numerous other deficiencies, among them the inadequate role played by the national Department of Health. Clearly, the entity suffers from a lack of skilled personnel, lack of monitoring and very low levels of compliance.
It is particularly shocking to note that the Department of Labour displayed various instances of noncompliance with PFMA and Treasury regulations. My colleagues have referred to that. I can just say that, in addition of the department paying performance bonuses far in excess of the Public Service directive, it would also seem that bonuses had been paid for underperformance. This indicates either complete incompetence, a total lack of knowledge or wilful ignorance on the part of the department and its accounting officer.
The PFMA is quite clear and an excellent directive for departments. The IFP is concerned about financial officers and accounting officers who apparently believe that they will not be criminally and/or civilly charged or prosecuted. I trust that at some stage a process will be developed according to which contraventions will be severely dealt with and that the time will come when, under severe circumstances, the relevant Minister will appear together with the accounting officer.
In conclusion, the IFP supports the recommendations of Scopa made in the reports before the House, we express our appreciation for the outstanding work being done by this committee and we thank the chairperson and each member individually. Thank you. [Applause.]
Mr P A GERBER: Madam Chair, as one of the apparently junior Members of Parliament who has only been on Scopa for 12 and a half years, it is an honour for me to participate in this debate. We are today adopting reports on four departments and three entities. I find it a bit disappointing that there is no one here from either the Ministries or the entities, and that is a similar situation with other reports of other committees.
They dilly-dally around here when they want their budgets passed, but a year later when we have to comment on how they spent it, or didn’t spend it, they are nowhere to be seen – and that is quite unacceptable.
I want to refer to the 77th Scopa report on the SA Weather Services for 2004 and 2005. The Auditor-General’s report on SA Weather Services highlighted the following issues of emphasis of matter.
The committee was informed that there were inadequate controls in place to monitor the progress of donor-funded projects against funds donated for specific purposes and projects. The report of the Auditor-General also highlighted the following instances of noncompliance with laws and regulations that occurred: the nonmaintenance of an asset register of members’ interests in relation to contracts; the investment policy of the SAWS was inadequate; and a lack of controls to ensure that quarterly reports were submitted on time.
The audit of the SAWS revealed shortcomings in the system of internal control, which included the following. It has been operating without an approved internal control policy for a number of years. There is a lack of proper debt control policy and poor enforcement of internal controls. There is a failure to monitor unallocated amounts on a regular basis in order to clear suspense accounts, and failure to perform leave reconciliation.
Then there is the issue of land. According to the SA Weather Service Act of 2001, a portion of the Department of Public Works’ land was allocated to SAWS. The SAWS did not register this land in its name, and therefore this land remains in the name of the Department of Public Works. If an entity takes five years to transfer a piece of land from a national department, then we shouldn’t accuse landowners of delaying land reform. We should rather look at the problems in our own midst. I want to highlight one specific issue in this report, and that is the nonmaintenance of a register of members’ interests in relation to contracts. We recommend that interests in contracts by management be urgently declared. Even if members of management do declare their interests in contracts, I think it is still morally wrong to have such an interest in contracts anyway. Even if an employee excuses him or herself from a decision-making meeting, that employee still has ample time before and after such meeting to influence decisions. It is morally wrong, altogether, whether they declare or not.
I raise this because it opens the door for corruption. Corruption is the enemy of economic development all over the world. It stands in the way of every opportunity we are trying to create to better the lives of the poorest of the poor. It drains our resources that would otherwise be used for building roads, clinics, houses, schools, etc. A nation weakened by rampant corruption cannot develop.
Our political liberalisation brought many challenges and opportunities. Our economic liberalisation also brought many challenges, but also new problems such as economic saboteurs, tax evaders, etc. Corruption is a business. The owners don’t give up easily. The owners of corruption invest heavily in politics, all over the world. It is self-sustaining and self-perpetuating.
Parliament should be a pillar of integrity at all times. Millions of people did not vote for poverty or no housing, or corruption, or dirty hospitals, etc. No, colleagues, they voted for us. They want us to stand up for them. More than a billion of the poorest of the poor all over the world put their faith in 35 000 members of parliaments all over the world. We have to pull them out of the gutter of poverty. We cannot allow ourselves to fail them.
We should not only talk against corruption just because it is politically sexy, as some parties do. We should – in the words of Uncle Billy Nair, who has been in this House for 10 years and is a light for us in Scopa – go for the jugular.
I want to end with a special poem on corruption, prepared by Mrs Kilumanga and Mrs Munghezi from Tanzania, which was handed to me when I was there a couple of months ago. I quote:
Corruption is the cancer that moves its ugly tentacles silently over all segments of society, Ripping out at the very core of all that is ethical, Plucking the roots of development, Undermining the efforts of those already fighting against the tide. Politicians, you are all in a perfect position To stop the wilful neglect of people’s rights, The sabotage of projects and programmes, The apathetic rhetoric of “things are the same everywhere” It is time to rise to the challenge and embrace the incorruptible. Corruption lurks in the vacant gaze of an ailing chid who has been given fake drugs, that white elephant project unused, a ghost reflecting only greed and avarice, while millions subexist in abject poverty. Corruption is the arsenic that laces the bitter pill of negligence and poor governance. The wheel is in motion, we can’t stop, and we won’t stop. We must continue to recognise it, stigmatise it, realise it, criticise it. And with one global voice shout for a call to action now!
I thank you. [Applause.]
Mr B E PULE: Madam Chairperson, as hon members know, the Standing Committee on Public Accounts carries out searching and rigorous assessment of financial administration in the national public sector, so that accounting authorities can be held accountable for their spending of the taxpayer’s money and their stewardship over public assets - of course, including this very institution, Parliament.
Concerning the many entities that the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, Scopa, engaged with this year, I wish to refer to issues that I believe the House should take note of and, of course, those issues that my colleagues have already alluded to. The first relates to the Auditor- General’s special reports on housing subsidies administered by the provincial housing departments.
By far the majority of our public sector spending on housing takes place through provincial housing departments. But it is with concern that we found that the co-ordination between the national housing department and provincial departments was weak, to say the least, and there was no clear directive from the national department. This cannot be permitted to continue, especially the fact that the instructions issued by the Minister of Housing aimed at improving the administration of subsidy allocations are not being implemented.
The second example relates to the Legal Aid Board. This is an institution that has proven that financial management challenges can be overcome if the Ministry and the management of the institution are serious about correcting that which needs to be fixed. From being one of the worst cases of financial and general mismanagement that Scopa came across some years ago, the Legal Aid Board has now received unqualified and very favourable audit reports over the last couple of years, and must be commended. And we are calling on other departments to do the same. Thank you.
Ms S RAJBALLY: Chairperson, in view of all the reports done by Scopa, the MF has found all in order. We suggest that the recommendations be prioritised to ensure that adequate management and funding of these sectors is implemented, without any corruption and mismanagement. The MF supports the Scopa reports.
Mr D M GUMEDE: Hon Chairperson, hon members and comrades, our freedom is not to do what we like, but what we ought to do. Freedom has a price and that price, is to be accountable. Without accountability, openness and transparency there cannot be freedom and without freedom there cannot be democracy. Secondly, our government, like any other organisation, company or institution, does have problems here and there, and now and then in its different organs.
Thirdly, the Office of the Auditor-General has noted that when it comes to governance, we keep raising the bar. This means that while having had a clean report the previous year and doing exactly the same things in the same way the following year, it may end up with a qualified report sometimes. For instance, we have introduced the Public Finance Management Act, the Municipal Finance Management Act and a number of Treasury regulations.
This has happened in an environment that has not augmented the availability of the types of financial management skills required at the rate that the changes demand. In the short to medium term, even Jipsa will not cope. If you add the number of unfilled vacancies in departments, then the problem grows and compliance becomes even more difficult. These are the concrete realities on the ground that we have to take into account from time to time and from situation to situation.
Given these dynamics, we indeed are proud that the vast majority of departments have complied. There are, of course, some departments that have repeatedly not complied. Amongst those departments is the Department of Labour and some entities under its control. I shall touch on the report of the Auditor-General regarding this aspect and also look at the report on the Compensation Fund, which are qualified reports as usual.
The departmental report, which was qualified for lack of evidence as required, stated that funds amounting to more than R90 million were indeed spent for purposes they were meant for. There was no evidence to this effect. That was one reason why the Auditor-General qualified this report. There are other problems like noncompliance with laws and inaccuracy of asset registers, amongst others.
Despite these problems, the department paid performance bonuses, which were more than three times the limit specified by Treasury. The previous speaker has mentioned that. The report before us tries to address that matter and, as a first step, we have requested a detailed report on this matter so as to take further action.
The Compensation Fund, which is administered by the same department, has also a qualified report on the basis of a lack of integrity in their financial information. Other problems relate to general computer controls, noncompliance with Treasury regulations, and its processing of claims information - for which recommendations have been provided in the report.
The committee commends, however, the Compensation Fund for establishing a forensic audit upon discovery of possible fraud, although this clearly is not enough. However, action has been taken and an attempt to recoup public funds has been made.
Ongoing debates on improvement of oversight have distinguished our country as one of the most vibrant democracies, and the one on Parliament is no exception. With the guidance of our Constitution, our Rules and character, it will ultimately be what it ought to be. This will set the scene for our winning nation and its Parliament.
Lastly, Donald Waters in his book, Secrets to Life, has this to say:
Leadership is an opportunity to serve – it is not a trumpet to self- importance.
Governance has a price, and that price is accountable, transparent and open quality service to all. I thank you, Chairperson.
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Chairperson, I move that the Reports be adopted. Motion agreed to.
Reports accordingly adopted.
The House adjourned at 18:13. ____
ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS
FRIDAY, 3 NOVEMBER 2006
TABLINGS
National Assembly and National Council of Provinces
-
The Minister of Science and Technology
(a) Report and Financial Statements of Academy of Science of South Africa for 2005-2006, including the Report of the Independent Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006.
COMMITTEE REPORTS
National Assembly
CREDA PLEASE INSERT REPORT - Insert T061103E-insert – PAGES 2441-2451 (only the National Assembly )
MONDAY, 6 NOVEMBER 2006
ANNOUNCEMENTS
National Assembly and National Council of Provinces
- Membership of Committees
1. The following changes have been made to the membership of Joint
Committees, viz:
Constitutional Review Committee
Appointed: Joubert, Mr L K, Ms Camerer, Ms S M (Alt)
JMC on Improvement of Quality of Life and Status of Children, Youth
and Disabled Persons
Appointed: Ngaleka, Ms E, Mohlaloga, Mr M R (Alt), Madella, Mr
A F (Alt), Tobias, Ms T V (Alt), Kondlo, Ms N C (Alt),
Mkongi, Mr B M (Alt)
National Assembly
-
Membership of Committees
-
The following changes have been made to the membership of Portfolio Committees, viz:
Agriculture and Land Affairs Appointed: Greyling, Mr C H F, Thomson, Ms B (Alt), Dlali, Mr D M (Alt), Ramphele, Mr T D H (Alt) Discharged: Baloyi, Mr M R, Ngaleka, Ms E, Nxumalo, Ms M D
Correctional Services Appointed: Nawa, Ms Z N, Chikunga, Ms L S (Alt), Mahote, Mr S (Alt), Makgate, Ms M W (Alt)
Communications Appointed: Yengeni, Ms L E, Nxumalo, Mr S N, Nkuna, Ms C (Alt), Maziya, Mr A M (Alt)
Education Appointed: Van der Heever, Mr R P Z, Maloney, Ms L (Alt) Discharged: Gcwabaza, Mr N E, Mentor, Ms M P, Montsitsi, Mr S D, Vadi, Mr I
Finance Appointed: Ainslie, Mr A R, Hogan, Ms B A (Alt), Malahlela, Mr M J (Alt), Mokoto, Ms N R (Alt), Dithebe, Mr S L (Alt) Discharged: Saloojee, Mr E
Home Affairs Appointed: Mathebe, Mr P M, Ntombela, Ms S H (Alt), Vundisa, Mr S S (Alt), Mathibela, Ms N F (Alt), Phala, Mr M J (Alt) Discharged: Gxowa, Ms N B
Public Works Appointed: Ngcengwane, Ms N D, Anthony, Mr T G, Nxumalo, Mr S N (Alt), Huang, Dr S (Alt), Gogotya, Mr N J (Alt) Discharged: Sekgobela, Ms P S, Molefe, Mr C T Safety and Security Appointed: Maziya, Mr A M (Alt), Discharged: Maunye, Ms M M, Gololo, Mr C L, Khumalo, Mr K M
Transport Appointed: Thomson, Ms B, Nxumalo, Mr M D, Magubane, Mr E N (Alt), Schneeman, Mr G D (Alt), Mshudulu, Mr S A (Alt) Discharged: Ngwenya, Ms W
Trade and Industry Appointed: Oliphant, Mr D D A, Ntuli, Ms B M, Rasmeni, Mr S M, Mr Nonkonyana, Mr M (Alt), Maja, Mr S J (Alt) Discharged: Sefularo, Ms M, Nkem-Abonta, Dr E, Khunou, Ms N P
Water Affairs and Forestry Appointed: Mosala, Mr B G, Mogase, Mr I D (Alt) Discharged: Asmal, Prof A K, Ramphele, Mr T D H
-
The following changes have been made to the membership of Standing Committees, viz:
Private Members’ Legislative Proposals and Special Petitions Appointed: Sekgobela, Ms P S, Ntlake, Ms M, Wang, Mr Y, Gerber, Mr P A (Alt), Kondlo, Ms N C (Alt), Tshwete, Ms P (Alt) Discharged: Carrim, Mr Y I
-
The following members have been appointed to serve on the Ad Hoc Committee mentioned, viz:
Review of Chapter 9 and Associated Institutions
African National Congress Asmal, Prof A K Dithebe, Mr S L Johnson, Ms C B Masutha, Adv T M Matsomela, Ms M J J
Democratic Alliance Delport, Dr J T Smuts, Ms M
Inkatha Freedom Party Van der Merwe, Mr J H
United Party of South Africa Simmons, Mr S
Minority Front Rajbally, Ms S
-
TABLINGS
National Assembly
- The Speaker
(a) Letter from the Minister of Communications, dated 3 November
2006, to the Speaker of the National Assembly, in terms of section
65(2)(a) of the Public Finance Management Act, 1999 (Act No 1 of
1999), explaining the delay in the tabling of the Annual Report of
the National Electronic Media Institute of South Africa for 2005-
2006:
NATIONAL ELECTRONIC MEDIA INSTITUTE OF SOUTH AFRICA – LATE
SUBMISSION OF ANNUAL REPORT
This letter serves to inform you that the National Electronic Media
Institute of South Africa “NEMISA” Annual Report for the year
ending 31 March 2006 was tabled before Parliament of the Republic
of South Africa after the due date of 31 August 2006.
The reason for the delay was due to the finalisation of the audit
as NEMISA had to attend to queries raised by the Auditor General.
NEMISA agreed with the Auditor General that additional time should
be allocated to rectify the issues raised in order to avoid a
qualification which, in turn, led to the delay in finalising the
Annual Report.
I trust that you find the above to be in order.
Best Regards,
signed
Dr IVY MATSEPE-CASABURRI
MINISTER
TUESDAY, 7 NOVEMBER 2006
ANNOUNCEMENTS
National Assembly and National Council of Provinces
- Classification of Bills by Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM)
(1) The JTM on 2 November 2006 in terms of Joint Rule 160(6)
classified the following Bill as a money Bill:
a) Adjustments Appropriation Bill [B 32 – 2006] (National Assembly
– sec 77)
(2) The JTM on 7 November 2006 in terms of Joint Rule 160(6)
classified the following Bill as a money Bill:
a) Revenue Laws Amendment Bill [B 33 – 2006] (National Assembly
–sec 77)
(3) The JTM on 7 November 2006 in terms of Joint Rule 160(6)
classified the following Bill as a section 75 Bill:
a) Revenue Laws Second Amendment Bill [B 34 – 2006] (National
Assembly – sec 75)
(4) The JTM on 2 November 2006 in terms of Joint Rule 160(6)
classified the following Bill as a section 76 Bill:
a) Public Service Amendment Bill [B 31 – 2006] (National Assembly
Provinces – sec 76)
- Draft Bills submitted in terms of Joint Rule 159
(1) South African Airways Bill, 2006, submitted by the Minister for
Public Enterprises. Referred to the Portfolio Committee on Public
Enterprises and the Select Committee on Labour and Public
Enterprises.
National Assembly
- Referral to Committees of papers tabled
(1) The Report of the Auditor-General indicated below is referred
to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of Vote 1 – The Presidency for
2005-2006, including the Report of the Auditor-General on the
Financial Statements of Vote 1 for 2005-2006 [RP 145-2006].
(2) The following paper is referred to the Joint Monitoring
Committee on Improvement of Quality of Life and Status of Women for
consideration and report:
a) Office on the Status of Women contained in the Report and
Financial Statements of Vote 1 – The Presidency for 2004-2005,
including the Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial
Statements of Vote 1 for 2005-2006 [RP 145-2006].
(3) The following paper is referred to the Joint Monitoring
Committee on Improvement of Quality of Life and Status of Children,
Youth and Disabled Persons for consideration and report:
a) Office on the Rights of the Child and the Office on the Status
of Disabled Persons contained in the Report and Financial
Statements of Vote 1 – The Presidency for 2005-2006, including
the Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements
of Vote 1 for 2004-2005 [RP 145-2006].
(4) The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Provincial and Local Government for consideration and report. The
Reports of the Auditor-General are referred to the Standing
Committee on Public Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of Vote 5 – Department of
Provincial and Local Government for 2005-2006, including the
Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements of
Vote 5 for 2005-2006.
b) Report and Financial Statements of the Municipal Demarcation
Board for 2005-2006, including the Report of the Auditor-
General on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006 [RP 140-
2006].
c) Report and Financial Statements of the Municipal Infrastructure
Investment Unit (MIIU) for 2005-2006, including the Report of
the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006
[RP 196-2006].
d) Report and Financial Statements of the National House of
Traditional Leaders for 2005-2006.
(5) The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Transport for consideration and report. The Reports of the Auditor-
General and the Independent Auditors are referred to the Standing
Committee on Public Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of Vote 33 – Department of
Transport for 2005-2006, including the Report of the Auditor-
General on the Financial Statements of Vote 33 for 2005-2006.
b) Report and Financial Statements of the Airports Company South
Africa Limited (ACSA) for 2005-2006, including the Report of
the Independent Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2005-
2006.
c) Report and Financial Statements of the Road Accident Fund (RAF)
for 2005-2006, including the Report of the Auditor-General on
the Financial Statements for 2005-2006.
(6) The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Social Development for consideration and report. The Report of the
Auditor-General is referred to the Standing Committee on Public
Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of the National Development
Agency (NDA) for 2005-2006, including the Report of the Auditor-
General on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006 [RP 201-
2006].
(7) The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Communications for consideration and report. The Reports of the
Auditor-General are referred to the Standing Committee on Public
Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of Vote 26 – Department of
Communications for 2005-2006, including the Report of the
Auditor-General on the Financial Statements of Vote 26 for 2005-
2006 [RP 221-2006].
b) Report and Financial Statements of the Universal Service Agency
(USA) for 2005-2006, including the Report of the Auditor-
General on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006 [RP 165-
2006].
c) Report and Financial Statements of the National Electronic
Media Institute of South Africa for 2005-2006, including the
Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements of
2005-2006 [RP 114-2006].
(8) The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Public Service and Administration for consideration and report. The
Reports of the Auditor-General are referred to the Standing
Committee on Public Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of Vote 10 – Department of
Public Service and Administration for 2005-2006, including the
Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements of
Vote 10 for 2005-2006 [RP 209-2006].
b) Report and Financial Statements of Vote 12 – South African
Management Development Institute (SAMDI) for 2005-2006,
including the Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial
Statements of Vote 12 for 2005-2006 [RP 236-2006].
c) Report and Financial Statements of the State Information
Technology Agency (Proprietary) Limited (SITA) for 2005-2006,
including the Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial
Statements for 2005-2006 [RP 20-2006].
(9) The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Public Works for consideration and report. The Report of the
Auditor-General is referred to the Standing Committee on Public
Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of the Council for the Built
Environment (CBE) for 2005-2006, including the Report of the
Auditor-General on the Financial Statements of Vote 32 for 2005-
2006 [RP 229-2006].
(10) The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Health for consideration and report. The Reports of the Auditor-
General are referred to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts
for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of Vote 16 – Department of
Health for 2005-2006, including the Report of the Auditor-
General on the Financial Statements of Vote 16 for 2005-2006
[RP 210-2006].
b) Report and Financial Statements of the Council for Medical
Schemes for 2005-2006, including the Report of the Auditor-
General on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006 [RP 230-
2006].
(11) The following paper is referred to the Joint Monitoring
Committee on the Improvement of Quality of Life and Status of
Children, Youth and Disabled Persons for consideration and report.
The Report of the Auditor-General is referred to the Standing
Committee on Public Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of the National Youth
Commission (NYC) for 2005-2006, including the Report of the
Auditor-General on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006 [RP
242-2006].
(12) The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Housing for consideration and report. The Reports of the Auditor-
General and the Independent Auditors are referred to the Standing
Committee on Public Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of the People’s Housing
Partnership Trust (PHPT) for 2005-2006, including the Report of
the Independent Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2005-
2006.
b) Report and Financial Statements of the National Home Builders
Registration Council (NHBRC) for 2005-2006, including the
Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements for
2005-2006 [RP 159-2006].
c) Report and Financial Statements of the Social Housing
Foundation for 2005-2006, including the Report of the
Independent Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006.
(13) The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Education for consideration and report. The Report of the
Independent Auditors is referred to the Standing Committee on
Public Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of the South African Council
for Educators (SACE) for 2005-2006, including the Report of the
Independent Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006.
(14) The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Environmental Affairs and Tourism for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of the National Environmental
Advisory Forum (NEAF) for 2005-2006.
(15) The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Science and Technology for consideration and report. The Reports of
the Auditor-General and the Independent Auditors are referred to
the Standing Committee on Public Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of the National Research
Foundation (NRF) for 2005-2006, including the Report of the
Auditor-General on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006.
b) Report and Financial Statements of the Godisa Trust for 2005-
2006, including the Report of the Independent Auditors on the
Financial Statements for 2005-2006.
(16) The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Minerals and Energy for consideration and report. The Report of the
Auditor-General is referred to the Standing Committee on Public
Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of the National Electricity
Regulator (NER) for 2005-2006, including the Report of the
Auditor-General on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006.
(17) The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Water Affairs and Forestry for consideration and report. The
Reports of the Auditor-General and the Independent Auditors are
referred to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts for
consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of Vote 34 – Department of
Water Affairs and Forestry for 2005-2006, including the Report
of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements of Vote 34
for 2005-2006 [RP 166-2006].
b) Report and Financial Statements of the Water Research
Commission for 2005-2006, including the Report of the Auditor-
General on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006 [RP 118-
2006].
c) Report and Financial Statements of the Trans-Caledon Tunnel
Authority (TCTA) for 2005-2006, including the Report of the
Independent Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006.
(18) The following paper is referred to the Standing Committee on
Public Accounts for consideration and to the Portfolio Committee on
Sport and Recreation:
a) Letter from the Minister of Sport and Recreation dated 28
September 2006 to the Speaker of the National Assembly, in
terms of section 65(2)(a) of the Public Finance Management Act,
1999 (Act No 1 of 1999), explaining the delay in the tabling of
the Annual Report of Boxing South Africa (BSA) for 2005-2006.
(19) The following paper is referred to the Standing Committee on
Public Accounts for consideration and to the Portfolio Committee on
Minerals and Energy:
(a) Letter from the Minister of Minerals and Energy dated 27
September 2006 to the Speaker of the National Assembly , in
terms of section 65(2)(a) of the Public Finance Management Act,
1999 (Act No 1 of 1999), explaining the delay in the tabling of
the Annual Report of Mintek for 2005-2006:
(20) The following paper is referred to the Standing Committee on the
Auditor General for consideration:
(a) Budget and Strategic Plan of the Auditor-General for 2007-
2010 [RP 225-2006].
(21) The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Finance for consideration and report. The Reports of the
Independent Auditors is referred to the Standing Committee on
Public Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of Sasria Limited for 2005-
2006, including the Report of the Independent Auditors on the
Financial Statements for 2005-2006.
b) Report and Financial Statements of the South African Reserve
Bank for 2005-2006, including the Report of the Independent
Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006.
c) The Address of the Governor of the Reserve Bank at the Eighty-
sixth Ordinary General Meeting of Shareholders.
(22) The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Finance for consideration:
a) Third Reporting Exemptions made in terms of section 74 of the
Financial Intelligence Centre Act, 2001 (Act No 38 of 2001),
tabled in terms of section 74(2)(b) of the Financial
Intelligence Centre Act, 2001.
b) Government Notice No 1035 published in Government Gazette No
29299 dated 13 October 2006: Third Reporting Exemption in terms
of section 74 of the Financial Intelligence Centre Act, 2001
(Act No 38 of 2001).
(23) The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Trade and Industry for consideration and report. The Report of the
Independent Auditors is referred to the Standing Committee on
Public Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of the National Empowerment
Fund for 2005-2006, including the Report of the Independent
Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006.
(24) The following papers are referred to the Standing Committee on
Public Accounts for consideration and to the Portfolio Committee on
Arts and Culture:
(a) Letter from the Minister of Arts and Culture dated 29
September 2006 to the Speaker of the National Assembly, in
terms of section 65(2)(a) of the Public Finance Management Act,
1999 (Act No 1 of 1999), explaining the delay in the tabling of
the Annual Report of the Department of Arts and Culture for
2005-2006.
(b) Letter from the Minister of Arts and Culture to the
Speaker of the National Assembly, in terms of section 65(2)(a)
of the Public Finance Management Act, 1999 (Act No 1 of 1999),
explaining the delay in the tabling of the Annual Report of
Arts, Culture and Heritage Institutions for 2005-2006.
(25) The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Arts and Culture for consideration and report. . The Report of the
Auditor-General is referred to the Standing Committee on Public
Accounts for consideration:
a) Report and Financial Statements of The Playhouse Company for
2005-2006, including the Report of the Auditor-General on the
Financial Statements for 2005-2006.
(26) The following paper is referred to the Standing Committee on
Public Accounts for consideration and to the Portfolio Committee on
Finance:
(a) Letter from the Minister of Finance, dated 4 October 2006,
to the Speaker of the National Assembly, in terms of section
65(2)(a) of the Public Finance Management Act, 1999 (Act No 1
of 1999), explaining the delay in the tabling of the Annual
Report of the Government Employees Pension Fund for 2005-2006.
(27) The following paper is referred to the Standing Committee on
Public Accounts for consideration and to the Portfolio Committee on
Public Enterprises:
(a) Letter from the Minister for Public Enterprises dated 6
October 2006 to the Speaker of the National Assembly, in terms
of section 65(2)(a) of the Public Finance Management Act, 1999
(Act No 1 of 1999), explaining the delay in the tabling of the
Annual Reports of Denel and Alexkor.
(28) The following paper is referred to the Standing Committee on
Public Accounts and the Portfolio Committee on Justice and
Constitutional Development for consideration:
a) Report of the Auditor-General on the summary of statements of
monies kept in trust in the Guardian’s Funds for the year ended
31 March 2004.
(29) The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Justice and Constitutional Development:
a) Government Notice No R.605 published in Government Gazette No
28942 dated 15 June 2006: Commission of Inquiry to conduct an
investigation into the alleged illicit activities of certain
South African companies or individuals relating to the United
Nations Oil-For-Food Programme in Iraq: Extension of period to
report, in terms of the Commissions Act, 1947 (Act No 8 of
1947).
(30) The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Trade and Industry for consideration and report:
a) Free Trade Agreement between the European Free Trade
Association (EFTA) and the Southern African Customs Union
(SACU), tabled in terms of section 231(2) of the Constitution,
1996.
b) Explanatory Memorandum to the Free Trade Agreement between the
European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and the Southern African
Customs Union (SACU).
(31) The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on
Agriculture and Land Affairs:
a) Memorandum of Understanding on the Trilateral and Allied Fields
between the Governments of the Republic of South Africa, the
Federal Republic of Brazil and the Republic of India under the
India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) Dialogue Forum, tabled in
terms of section 231(3) of the Constitution, 1996.
TABLINGS
National Assembly and National Council of Provinces
- The Minister of Arts and Culture
a) Report and Financial Statements of the Nelson Mandela National
Museum for 2005-2006, including the Report of the Auditor-General
on the Financial Statements for 2005-2006 [RP 192-2006].
b) Report and Financial Statements of the Robben Island Museum for
2005-2006, including the Report of the Auditor-General on the
Financial Statements for 2005-2006 [RP 217-2006].
COMMITTEE REPORTS
National Assembly and National Council of Provinces
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